Deputy mayor points to museum project delay

Deputy mayor Nobby Clark has hinted work on Invercargill’s museum will be pushed back in the council’s draft Long Term Plan.

In December last year, the council confirmed it wanted to spend $52.2 million on strengthening and refurbishing the museum on its current Queens Park site. At the moment, the building is deemed earthquake-prone and is closed to the public.

Councillors agreed to ask the community as part of the 2021-2031 Long Term Plan process if it supports the choice.

Council staff circled 2025 as a potential date to have the museum reopened. However, last week Clark pointed to the yet-to-be-released draft 2021-2031 Long Term Plan which has the museum work pushed out a year or two.

His comments came at a risk and assurance committee meeting where a report outlined the pressures on the council’s project work schedule.

‘‘The big issue, and the big elephant in the room, is the new museum, or the strengthening of the museum. That is pushed out in our Long Term Plan and I am not sure we have community acceptance of that,’’ Clark said.

The report identified streetscape work, Stead St stopbank, the museum, and the water tower as four projects which in some places were ‘‘unfeasible’’ to achieve in terms of scheduling. Internal resourcing and capacity in the market to carry out the work have been identified as problem areas.

Councillor Ian Pottinger said the information was helpful leading into the Long Term Plan discussion because it clearly identified what the council had to do first. ‘‘The cityscape, the Stead St stopbank, and the critical Three Waters renewals, they have to take priority over the next projects.’’

The council is scheduled to confirm its draft 2021 Long Term Plan on March 29 with public consultation to start on March 30.

Hearings are scheduled for May 11-13 with the council to adopt its plan by June 30.