Funds Sought For Ferrymead

Press, Volume CIX, Issue 32011, 11 June 1969, Page 7

Funds Sought For Ferrymead

A museum of science and industry could be made to pay its ownj way so long as it had substantial financial assistance in its formative years, said Mr S. H. Wood, the president of the Ferrymead Museum of Science and Industry Society, at its annual meeting this week.

Mr Wood said that this point had been proved at Auckland where the museum at Western Springs was now self-supporting, largely because it was able to begin with a free municipal building.

“It also received $30,000 in Golden Kiwi grants. We hope that we will get the chance to do the same and better here/’ he said. “It is unfortunate that everything done by our society and by other membr bodies of the Ferrymead Trust is overshadowed by the desperate need for large sums of money for the erection of large buildings,” he said. There was a limit, Mr Wood said, to what could be done by enthusiasm and voluntary labour without- substantial capital assistance from national and local government. The pilot museum at Garvins Road, Hornby, was a valuable experiment which also helped to get the society widely known. This had since been closed and the exhibits moved to Ferrymead. Mr Wood said that negotiations for the disposal of the land at Hornby had been very protracted, but proceeds of sale were expected in August. The museum building will be given to the Canterbury branch of the Railway and Locomotive Society for removal to Ferrymead where it will be used as a clubrooms.

The collection of exhibits continued and offers were being received every week, said Mr Wood. After mentioning the magnificent gift of a United States Navy Dakota, Mr Wood said that further aircraft were available to the society in

various parts of New Zealand as soon as they could be adequately preserved. The society’s bitterest disappointment of the year was the Heathcote County Council’s decision not to proceed with the formation of the proposed Ferrymead Drive connecting the society’s property to Bridle Path Road. “This road is absolutely vital to all the plans of this society and its fellow trust members and it will have to be carried through even if it is necessary to do it at the expense of the society,” said Mr Wood. - Mr Wood said that the society had an opportunity of buying a horse-drawn icecream cart, which had been used by one family for 50 years for selling ice-cream in Christchurch.

A member of the society, Mr N. C, Walsh, had helped raise $lOO. In order to buy the ice-cream cart, which was in very good condition, another $l4O was needed.

Mr J. S. Shanks, of the Ferrymead Trust Board, said that the inanuguration of a very large building programme was a matter of extreme importance if Ferrymead was to make any marked progress. The trust at present was investigating a proposal for a building project costing $40,000 to $50,000, but without funds little progress could be made, said Mr Shanks. Loan finance for buildings was the only way to provide the facilities needed, but a regular annual income would be required to service any loans obtained. One building at present

under consideration by the trust was the old tramway building in Moorhouse Avenue. No engineering study on this proposal had been made; it was merely a proposal, said Mr Shanks. The society supported the efforts of the trust in its search for a large building suitable for removal to Ferrymead. Mr M. J. Hayes suggested that for a display building something of a modest size would do to begin’ with. But, he said, unless something concrete was planned in the near future the Ferrymead project could stagnate and even die. Mr Shanks said that the success of Ferrymead at this stage of its development depended on everyone working together on a positive plan. Until there was one no money would be forthcoming from the public. The executive of the society had spent month after month working on a master plan for Ferrymead, said Mt Wood. After a year the planningcommittee was “put in

recess because there was nothing in sight to pay for the plans.”

Mr Shanks criticised what he called a small “closed” planning group for not sharing problems with the other interested organisations.

It was not a closed group, said Mr Wood. The entire executive had acted as the planning committee and that included most of the persons round the table.

“We cannot go further with the general layout planning until funds are available. When they are priorities can be worked out,” said Mr E. J. Speight. The following officers were elected: patron, Mr M. A. Connelly, M.P.; president, Mr S. H. Wood; vice-president, Mr C. J. Croskie: honorary vicepresidents, Messrs G. L. Evans, J. F.. Williams, and P. J. Skellerup; honorary secretary, Mr N. Andrews; honorary treasurer, Mr G. H. Hickford; honorary auditor, Mr R. A. Anderson; executive council, Messrs W. G. Beardsly, A. W. Flack, A. H. Inkster, J. B. Jenkins, C. L. Miles, R. J. M. Banks, W. J. S. McLaughlin, E. J. Speight, R. Sutherland, G. K. Dewry, W. C. Walsh and B. Fleming and Wing Commander J. D. Rees.