The Maidu Interpretive Center will receive a facelift of sorts as the Roseville City Council approved the construction of a permanent building to replace the current facility at last week’s city council meeting.

The new building is an Indian roundhouse design modeled after the ceremonial building of Native American cultures. The new facility will be 7,200 square feet and will nearly double the size of the current building, which has been home to the Maidu Center since 2001.

Due to lack of funding, the construction of a permanent building has been 15 years in the making. Approximately half of the estimated $3.5 million construction cost has been achieved in grant funding with the other half coming from the Citywide Park Fund and the public facilities fund.

The new facility is expected to open in December 2009 and will have an increased capacity for school tours, enhanced exhibit space and an expanded classroom and auditorium.

Visitor admission and tour fees are expected to increase by 25-50 cents per person to offset the higher operations costs in the new facility.

“We think with a more expanded and nicer permanent facility, based on our 40,000 guests this is a small incremental change,” said Community Services Director Mike Shellito.

In other council business, a new traffic signal will be installed at the intersection of Woodcreek Oaks Boulevard and Camino Capistrano as part of the state-funded Safe Routes to School program. The intersection is a major pedestrian route for children attending Quail Glen Elementary School.

“The purpose is to provide a safe environment for children to travel to and from school and avoid conflicts with vehicle traffic,” said Tony Phillips, assistant engineer of Roseville’s traffic section.

Council members also approved a resolution from the Roseville Fire Department regarding weed control for vacant properties.

The new program will entail contacting vacant property owners and requesting the removal of weeds by a specified amount of time.

If the timeline is not met, the fire department will hire a contractor to remove the weeds at the property owner’s expense. The property owner will be made aware of this action and will be responsible for reimbursing the city for the weed removal costs as well as an administrative fee.

“Vegetation management is necessary to minimize the risk and hazard of grass fires which lead to property damage especially during the summer during fire season,” said Dennis Mathisen, Roseville Fire Department fire marshal.