- Demolition of the earthquake-prone museum building will officially begin in early June
- Collection was digitised to preserve historical items from the Wyndham and District Museum
- Volunteers are actively raising funds to build a future museum on the same site
Demolition work will soon begin on the Wyndham and District Historical Museum building, which has remained closed since 2017 due to earthquake safety concerns.
Preparation work will start on 26 May. This will include setting up site facilities, safety fencing, traffic control measures, and protecting overhead power lines. Scaffolding will follow soon after. The full demolition process will start on 3 June.
The demolition will involve both mechanical and manual techniques. A combination of long-reach excavators fitted with specialist tools and hand tools will be used, especially on walls next to nearby buildings. The project is expected to be completed, with the site reinstated, by 27 June.
Southland-based Ryal Bush Transport won the contract for the demolition project.
The museum, which was once home to a wide-ranging collection covering the history of the Wyndham area, closed its doors eight years ago. Its collection included information and artefacts relating to family genealogy, local sheep and dairy farming, early dairy factories, horse racing, everyday household items, and records from local clubs and societies.
Since the closure, the collection has been carefully digitised with help from Project Ark. This is a collaborative effort between Invercargill City Council and the Southland and Gore district councils. The aim was to record and preserve items from the region’s 12 museums, beginning in 2018. The collection can now be viewed online at www.ehive.com.
A group of committed volunteers is continuing to raise funds to eventually build a new museum on the same site.