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Two ministers walked the construction site of Invercargill's new regional museum on Monday, and the building is close enough to finished that they came away impressed.
Arts, Culture and Heritage Minister Paul Goldsmith and Invercargill MP Penny Simmonds visited the Museum of Southland site alongside Mayor Tom Campbell, council chief executive Michael Day, and museum director Eloise Wallace. The visit comes with the build in its final stages ahead of a public opening expected in 2027.
Goldsmith didn't hold back. "Heritage and the arts and culture are very fundamental basics to any successful society and city, so I commend Council for the amazing facility they're going to have here for generations," he said.
He made clear the museum's value extends well beyond the region. "It's also been an important part of how we make a living in this country, so I think this region's going to be extremely well-equipped both in terms of both the local kids and citizenry understanding their history and their culture, but also in being a real attraction, set in this wonderful park, and opening up a fresh view, a fresh angle, on this part of the city. It's very exciting."
Simmonds, who represents Invercargill in Parliament, was equally direct about what the facility will mean for people who have watched the project develop. "We have waited a long time to have our museum returned to us. I'm delighted with what I've seen and I know that will be something that we can all enjoy and celebrate," she said.
She described the scale of what's been built. "I'm impressed with the construction and scale of the facility and what it will mean for local people when it's opened next year. It will be a great asset, providing each of us with an opportunity to reflect on our past, to understand our present and to look forward to the future."
Simmonds also painted a picture of the museum in use. "I'm so excited that this new facility will soon to be open for local people — I can just imagine it filled with families, with visiting school groups, retired people, and those holidaying in the south. The new museum will also be a real tourist drawcard for Invercargill, with the potential to benefit the local tourism and hospitality sectors economically."
Mayor Campbell used the visit to make the case for central government's ongoing role in what the council is building. "The scale of opportunity the museum represents for both our region, and New Zealand as a whole, is significant, and it was hugely beneficial to have an opportunity to discuss the roles central and local government can play in achieving our shared cultural, educational, tourism, and regional development outcomes," he said.
Mayor Campbell also laid out the ambition behind the project. "Our aspiration for the new regional museum is to create a marquee cultural institution where the people of Southland see themselves, and their stories of the past, present, and the future, reflected within its visitor experience. Equally, we want to showcase and celebrate those stories with domestic and international visitors, to help them understand what makes our corner of the world inherently distinct and special. Our hope is that it gives people even more reason to visit Invercargill and Southland, and allows them to gain a rich understanding of our people and places."
Museum director Wallace described what the facility is designed to do. "The museum will connect our region's nationally-significant collections with schools, families, researchers, and visitors from around the globe to encounter our stories in a meaningful and accessible way," she said.
Wallace welcomed the ministerial attention. "We were pleased to be able to share an inside look of what is shaping up to be an incredible facility for not only our community, but one that we hope plays a key role in telling the wider New Zealand story, both with our Invercargill Member of Parliament Simmonds, and the Minister for Arts, Culture, and Heritage, Paul Goldsmith. Southland's stories are worth celebrating, and the museum will give us a world-class platform to be able to do that."
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