Holocaust museum in Skokie to close for renovations this summer

The Illinois Holocaust Museum & Education Center will close temporarily this summer for renovations that will take about a year.

Illinois residents and tourists who want to learn more about the Holocaust during that time will be able to check out some of the museum’s exhibits at a smaller facility in downtown Chicago.

Operating at 9603 Woods Drive in Skokie, the museum attracts more than 100,000 visitors annually. The project promises to be the most significant renovation of the museum since it opened in 2009.

A larger welcome center is planned, a new auditorium will be built, security will be upgraded and restrooms will be added, among other changes. One new element will be a space where visitors can rest and quietly reflect on what they’re seeing and learning.

“We want to keep expanding … and make our space accessible and comfortable to visitors,” said Kelley Szany, the museum’s senior vice president of education and exhibitions.

A cost estimate hasn’t been released, nor have museum officials said how the project will be funded. The project still is in the design stage, a spokesperson said.

Ahead of the planned work, all exhibitions will close to the public June 2. Public programs will continue, by reservation only, until the facility completely shuts down July 1.

During the construction, a temporary facility will operate 360 N. State St. in Chicago’s River North neighborhood. That’s the former site of the Museum of Broadcast Communication.

Creating the satellite facility is particularly important because of rising antisemitism in the U.S., Szany said.

Interest in the Holocaust may also be greater than usual this year because 2025 is the 80th anniversary of the end of both the Holocaust and World War II.

“We understand the unique connection to this important commemorative year,” Szany said.

The Skokie campus is expected to reopen in summer 2026.