Museum faces $50,000 bill

Press, 6 October 1977, Page 6

Museum faces $50,000 bill

The Lyttelton Maritime Museum Society faces a $50,000 bill to earthquakeproof one of the buildings it is considering to house its collection, the Lyttelton Library.

The library is one of two sites being considered as a permanent home for the collection, the other being the Lyttelton Police Station.

The society’s chairman (Captain A. R. Champion) told the Lyttelton Harbour Board yesterday that the building would become available once the library moved into the present Lyttelton Borough Council offices. Captain Champion was supporting the society’s application for a Harbour Board grant to help put the museum on its feet.

Captain Champion said the museum’s present building had a high fire risk and new premises had to be found within 12 months.

Earthquake-proofing the library included removing parapets and attending to cracked walls, he said. Considerable practical support had already been received from local service clubs. The Harbour Board yesterday granted $5O, but this could be considerably increased next year when more information was available.

A suggestion from one board member, Mr G. D. Cook, that the society could have, the steamer express terminal for the same price .was scotched because of traffic problems on the wharf area and the doubtful practicality of moving the building to another site.