$20m heritage collection in ‘garden shed’
Treasures were covered in plastic sheeting at a Nelson research facility during last year’s floods, and the region’s $20 million collection is at ‘‘significant risk’’ in a home that is not fit for purpose, councillors were told.
During a presentation at a joint committee meeting of Tasman District and Nelson City councils, Tasman Bays Heritage Trust internal project manager for the archives, research and collection project Belinda Wheatley said that the current Isel Park building was the ‘‘equivalent of a garden shed’’.
The Nelson and Tasman councils have agreed to fund $3.165m and $3.2m respectively for a new Archives, Research & Collection facility to be built on Church St, which will have a total cost of $12.4m.
Wheatley conveyed to councillors the importance and urgency of replacing the building.
‘‘The collection is absolutely crucial to how we educate and inspire visitors. If we are to be good ancestors, we must preserve this collection for future generations.’’
There were multiple issues with the Isel park building – from trees and a creek nearby, to access issues for iwi groups and school groups because of the layout and crowding of the interior.
‘‘The building itself is at the end of its functional life,’’ Wheatley said.
‘‘So our collections team do the best that they can, but the building itself is a risk to the collection.’’
A photograph was shown of shelves covered in plastic sheeting which was used during the August floods to stop water dripping onto items.
‘‘Essentially, a $20 million collection is stored in what I like to call the equivalent of garden shed,’’ she said.
In terms of the new building, it was not a ‘‘not an architectural vanity project’’ and the trust had prioritised their list of requirements.
The project had made ‘‘strong progress’’ with the procurement of the architect and the design team, and resource consent was applied for in February.
The trust board will finalise a design by the end of the year.
Assuming all funding was secured, Wheatley said the trust would break ground in early 2024.
Nelson Mayor Nick Smith said a huge problem for both councils was the level of construction price inflation at the moment.
‘‘You provided us today with the figure of $12.4 million. How confident are you of that number in the wake of some of those cost pressures with inflation at 7% and as high as 15% in the construction sector?’’
The trust’s audit and risk committee trustee and chair Darren Mark said some of the floor area was ‘‘having to come back a little bit’’ to maintain the cost at the original level.