Talk of move for Novium
Councillors discussed the possibility of moving the Novium Museum to a larger site in the future.
Councillors have speculated about moving the Novium Museum to a bigger site.
While there are no plans for any such move in the near future, some members of Chichester District Council’s overview and scrutiny committee felt it would be a good idea.
David Palmer (Con, Lavant) spoke about ‘having a museum which is much more ambitious and of a much higher quality than the one we have at the moment’.
He added: “My view is that the sort of museum I would like Chichester to have going forward can never be accommodated within the present confines of the Novium.”
While stressing that absolutely no consideration should be given to closing the Novium unless it had somewhere else to go, Mr Palmer asked for the terms of reference, which define its purpose and structure, to include the possibility of moving to a larger home.
Roy Briscoe, cabinet member for culture, told the meeting he would consider this but added: “At the moment they stay as they are.”
The museum, which opened in Tower Street in 2012, is built over the remains of a Roman bath house, which fill much of the ground floor.
Funding for the museum is in place for the next year and Mr Briscoe, who chairs the Novium Task and Finish Group, said they would have to wait for a future services review before making any decisions.
In the meantime, the council has been looking at ways to improve the museum in an effort to attract more people – once the pandemic rules allow – and help generate more income.
The £1.7m of improvements proposed by consultants were deemed too expensive – it would take 18 years to recover the costs – so officers have been looking at smaller projects.
These included setting up large advertising banners outside the museum – which would need planning permission – and making improvements to audio visuals inside.
The meeting was told that officers were looking into whether any grant funding would be available to pay for some of the work.