Editorial: Home needed for our history

The Battle of Gate Pa exhibition in Greerton.

Thousands of people have visited the World War I and Battle of Gate Pa (Pukehinahina) exhibitions in Tauranga - and yet both are facing an uncertain future because the city lacks a museum to house them.

As reported in the Bay of Plenty Times Weekend, the two exhibitions are searching for permanent homes as their temporary venues expire.

The Tauranga to the Trenches exhibition finished at Classic Flyers last weekend and is set to be stored.

About 9000 people have seen the $100,000 exhibit since it opened on April 25. Two thousand people came on its opening day.

The Battle of Gate Pa exhibition has been housed in a temporary space at the Tauranga Moana Maori Trust Board Hall since December.

The exhibition showcases the April 1864 battle, which had its 150-year commemoration last year.

The group has been told they'll need to vacate the space by the weekend of May 31. Up to 13,000 people have visited the Gate Pa exhibit so far.

The group maintains a temporary storage facility in warehouses opposite the Cargo Shed, and has asked Tauranga City Council for permission to renovate the warehouses as a more permanent option for the Gate Pa display.

Despite Tauranga now being one of the largest and fastest-growing cities in New Zealand, there isn't even a makeshift museum here and our artifacts and treasures are stored in a building in Mount Maunganui - hidden from the eager minds of the next generation and the tourists.

The fact the Battle of Gate Pa and Tauranga to the Trenches exhibitions might also end up in storage adds weight to the argument that the city desperately needs a museum - without a museum other important pieces of our history will be hidden from view.

It is good to know that a museum has been identified the by Civic Amenities Group, a group business leaders and philanthropists who have picked up the challenge of finding ways to fund key civic amenities.

Something needs to be done to ensure the city's history can be on display for future generations.