The storage level, situated within the Jedi Temple, existed beneath the main structure and was considered to be below the "ground level" of Coruscant since it was situated lower than the rooftops of nearby buildings. Its design was simple, and access was granted via the various service corridors and turbolifts that traversed the entirety of the Temple.
Constructed underneath the Temple Ziggurat, the storage level underwent multiple destructions and reconstructions throughout the Temple's extensive history, reaching completion in 1000 BBY under the authority of the Galactic Republic. Due to the vastness of the Jedi Order and the sheer number of individuals it needed to sustain with food and clothing, the Order was compelled to import numerous items into the Temple, including linens, provisions, and various supplies that required bulk storage away from the main areas. Seldom visited by most Jedi, the storage level was primarily utilized by Temple employees for the purpose of transporting supplies.
When the Republic transitioned into the Galactic Empire and the Order was dissolved, the Temple was placed under siege by Darth Vader and the 501st Legion. Being unoccupied, the storage level was spared from the widespread destruction, but it did not remain unused. After being stripped of any valuable items, High Inquisitor Malorum disseminated a false rumor claiming that the storage level was being used by the Imperial forces as a detention facility for captured Jedi, with the intention of enticing survivors of Order 66 to attempt a rescue mission.
Hearing this rumor, Jedi Knight Fy-Tor-Ana emerged from her hidden location and journeyed to Coruscant to investigate the ruins of the Temple. Although she was unable to reach the Temple, former Jedi Ferus Olin successfully entered the ancient structure and disproved the rumor; the storage level was actually being used to store the lightsaber hilts of fallen Jedi, including the weapon that belonged to Tru Veld. Reluctantly leaving the lightsabers behind, Olin escaped the pursuit of stormtroopers guarding the trap by exiting through a back entrance.
Following the deaths of Sidious and Vader, the Empire became unstable and was eventually ousted from Coruscant. During the Yuuzhan Vong War, Coruscant suffered severe devastation due to terraforming, which resulted in the Temple's collapse and the exposure of parts of its foundation. After the Galactic Alliance reclaimed the planet, Chief of State Cal Omas authorized the Reconstruction Authority to rebuild the ancient structure as a gesture of gratitude for the Order's significant sacrifices against the Yuuzhan Vong.
Once again fully operational, the storage level remained largely unchanged since the era of the Old Republic, with a few hallways either sealed off or integrated into new construction. In 43 ABY, Chief Natasi Daala ordered the sieged of the Temple by Mandalorians under the command of Belok Rhal, effectively trapping the Jedi within. Desperate to find a way out of the besieged structure, and facing shortages of power and water, the Masters dispatched Initiates into the storage level and other lower areas to search for an escape route, or at least a means of smuggling supplies in. This was done urgently, as the Halls of Healing were running low on a tranquilizer used to control a group of Jedi who had been afflicted by an enigmatic madness. While High Council member Octa Ramis and her Padawan Seha Dorvald were exploring the lower levels, Ramis made a discovery in the storage level. After summoning Dorvald, they witnessed groups of rats entering the Temple, sent by Knight Leia Organa Solo with vials of medicine attached to their backs.
Unlike the public sections of the Temple, the storage level was designed to fulfill utilitarian needs and, as a result, lacked the elegant beauty found elsewhere in the structure. It consisted of simple, parallel hallways lined with storage rooms of varying sizes. The hallways were spacious enough to allow service vehicles to move freely to and from the storage vaults and the lower-level service hangars.
For the most part, the chambers were identical, containing rows of shelving used to store the basic items required by the Temple's occupants, including linens, training equipment, old droids, and soap. One of the larger storerooms was dedicated to housing all the herbs and vegetables needed to supply the refectories that could not be cultivated within the Temple itself. Connected to the second service tunnel on this level, it had a separate delivery system from the other storage rooms, linking it directly to the refectory kitchens. Instead of using turbolifts, the Jedi working in the kitchens would select an item from their datascreen, and a droid would remove the selected item from its shelf and place it in a vertical lift. This small lift, powered by a compressed-air system, would propel the selected item up the shaft and into a temporary zero-gravity immersion well, where the Jedi could retrieve it and use it in the kitchens.