As it assembles a new archive chronicling the history of the Catholic church in the U.S. and Canada, Boston College submitted plans for a new building to house the growing trove of documents.

The 49,000-square-foot archive building would be built next to the Theology and Ministry Library in an 18-month construction period. Boston College is seeking an expedited approval for the project, according to an institutional master plan amendment submitted to the Boston Planning & Development Agency.

Boston College has been assembling the archive to provide a permanent storage place for the historical documents, many of which are donated from religious orders closing because of financial difficulties and declining personnel. The school’s existing archive storage space is close to capacity, according to the BPDA filing.

For over a decade, Boston College has included a 14,000-square-foot expansion of its Theology and Ministry Library as part of its long-range facilities plan.

But following the establishment of its Catholic Religious Archives project in 2019, the plans were expanded to include a 49,000-square-foot building linked to the library by a single-story connector.

The 55-foot-tall structure, located off Lake Street, will include archive shelving and climate control equipment. The building will house institutional records and documents from Catholic orders and congregations in the U.S. and Canada.

A comment period on the project runs through July 31.