Councils
The Tisbury storage facility, part of the Invercargill City Council’s ambitious Project 1225, has reached a critical milestone in its construction. The installation of the roof of the facility, earmarked to house millions of museum treasures, signifies the halfway point of the build. Related: Tisbury Storage Facility Discussed at Council Meeting
Project 1225, a plan backed by a $39.4 million investment from the council, is a three-pronged initiative aiming to construct a new museum, a new home for the tuatara, and the Tisbury storage facility. The latter will serve as the repository for a significant part of the city’s vast 4.5 million collections.
The commencement of work at the Tisbury site was officially marked in December, accompanied by a traditional sod-turning ceremony and blessing. Council Programme Director Lee Butcher expressed his satisfaction with the progress.
“This facility is an extremely important part of Project 1225, given that it will be the place where many of our collections items will be safely stored,” Butcher said, further assuring that the storage facility is on schedule for completion by December 2023.
In addition to progressing with the construction, the museum team has been diligently preparing the collection for the move. Butcher reported that the packing of the collection is almost finished.
Project 1225 Lead Councillor Grant Dermody expressed confidence in the project’s trajectory, emphasizing the significance of reaching the halfway point.
“It gives me absolute confidence, as it should the whole community, that the museum rebuild project is on track. In less than six months we will have our first building under Project 1225 completed, which will only have a flow-on effect for the rest of it,” Dermody stated.
The storage facility promises to be more than just a secure location for the city’s treasures. It will feature shelved areas for various collection objects, cold storage areas, offices and workrooms, and a car park.
Additionally, it will include a public space for community members to view pieces of the collection for research purposes.
Butcher praised the hard work and dedication of contractors ABL, who have been instrumental in the construction since its inception in December 2022. He credited the ABL team’s relentless efforts for keeping the project on track.
The planned timeline indicates that collection items will start to be relocated to the new facility upon its completion in December. This move is scheduled to be finished well in time for the demolition of the current museum building, slated to commence in April 2024.