Bay of Plenty Regional Council grants Rotorua Museum $4.1 million

To assist with the creation of exhibitions for the strengthened and redeveloped venue, Rotorua Museum Te Whare Taonga o Te Arawa is to receive a $4.1million grant from the Bay of Plenty Regional Council. The grant, to be made through the Rotorua Museum Centennial Trust, is a huge boost for the exhibition component of the wider redevelopment project.

The news came as the Regional Council announced $1.86 billion investment in the region over the next 10 years as part of the Long Term Plan approved last week.

Rotorua Museum Director Lizzie Marvelly enthused “we are hugely grateful for the support of the Bay of Plenty Regional Council and we’re excited to be getting on with this mahi.

“We have developed a comprehensive community engagement plan and will be talking to a wide range of people throughout the rohe. We have held a handful of initial hui with some Ngāti Whakaue and Te Arawa entities, and an extensive iwi engagement programme will soon be rolled out around the Te Arawa region. We will also be talking with various community groups, youth, and our general public.”

During this community engagement programme, which is expected to take 12 months, the Museum team will be gathering information from the local community about the stories and taonga that are important to them, and themes they would like to see reflected in the redeveloped Museum.

From there a master exhibition plan will be developed, along with initial concepts for what the exhibitions might include. These concepts will then be brought back out to the community for further discussion before proceeding into more detailed designs.

Construction, to strengthen and redevelop the Category 1 Bath House building in which the Museum is housed, is due to get underway next year and is expected to take two years. The completed Museum is scheduled to open in 2025.

For further information go to visiontoaction.nz/projects-home/museum/

Image top: Rotorua Museum Nga Pumanawa o Te Arawa Te Whare Taonga o Te Arawa. Credit: David Hamilton Photography; image above: Rotorua Museum Te Whare Taonga o Te Arawa. Credit: Adrian Hodge