The Old Patent Office, the 1830s-era building in Gallery Place that is the home to the National Portrait Gallery, just got a major infusion of needed cash to build an enclosed canopy over its courtyard. The Post reports that Washington philanthropists Robert and Arlene Kogod have given the Smithsonian Institution $25 million for the project. That gift will help make the great enclosure (pictured here), designed by the esteemed Sir Norman Foster who designed a similar glass roof at the British Museum, a reality.

The Old Patent Office has been closed for the past four years as the building, the third oldest federal building in the capital, is gutted to be the restored home of the National Portrait Gallery and Smithsonian American Art Museum. The collections of both museums are traveling around the country as the new home is being prepared.

Despite the gift, there is still money to raise. From the Post:

But the Smithsonian still needs to raise $60 million more to pay for the $298 million cost of renovating the building and reinstalling the museums. The federal government has appropriated $166 million, and $70 million has been raised from the private sector.

The National Capital Planning Commission has given a preliminary green light to the Foster glass enclosure, though there are still some preservation sticking points that need to be resolved.