The Marlborough Museum is no longer double locked. Photo: LDR / Maia Hart
The re-opening of the Marlborough Museum is no longer at a stalemate, after the council handed the front door keys over to the Marlborough Historical Society.
The society is now working towards opening "as soon as possible", although it could be staggered, society president Paul Davidson said.
Earlier this month, the Marlborough District Council locked the main doors to the museum and was holding on to the keys.
In response, the society - which the council handed management of the museum to at long-term plan deliberations - wrapped a padlock around the museum door handles to stop council staff from entering the museum.
The society was concerned about items that the council wanted to take from the museum, but Davidson said this had been resolved, although the council had taken "quite a lot of stuff away".
"We don't want to make any commitment at present, but we will progressively open the museum to the public in a matter of weeks rather than months," Davidson said.
"We've been left in a bit of difficulty but that's not unexpected, we're looking forward to the challenge."
The museum when it was double locked. Photo: LDR / Maia Hart
The council decided to hand management of the museum to the society following a submission to the council's long-term plan, when the society argued the museum had "gone backwards" under the council's management.
The council had taken over the museum on 1 July, 2023, following a review of the Marlborough Heritage Trust, but did not reopen the museum until December.
The museum ended up double-locked because of a dispute about items donated after 2016, which was when the Marlborough Heritage Trust took over from the society as guardians of the region's historical assets.
The trust was formed because the society was struggling to manage its assets, which included the Marlborough Museum, the Beaverton buildings at Brayshaw Park and Blenheim's Cob Cottage.
However, the trust also struggled to manage the assets and kept asking the council for more money, which was what prompted the review that ultimately led to the council taking over management.
Marlborough Historical Society members Paul Davidson, left, and Trevor Jane change the sign at Marlborough Museum earlier this month. Photo: LDR / Maia Hart
Davidson said the council had taken computers and "technical stuff" from the museum when they walked away, so the society was having to look at what systems it had, and what it needed to put in so the museum could reopen.
"We're working on that as we speak," he said.
"We've got to reintroduce systems, staffing, volunteers. It will take a little while."
The trust received a $40,000 operating grant from the council as agreed to during long-term plan deliberations.
The society held a special general meeting on 21 July, where members passed a vote of confidence in the current committee, Davidson said.
The council museum staff would operate under a new Heritage Marlborough brand, and focus on supporting heritage organisations across the region with collection and project management, staff and volunteer resourcing, archive management and promotion, and a large archive digitisation programme.
The museum had a permanent Wairau Bar exhibition, wine exhibition and a "Victorian rooms" showcase. It was also home to the Marlborough Express archives.
LDR is local body journalism co-funded by RNZ and NZ On Air.
