Museum in limbo as council decides to close Foxton's old court house

Tony Hunt, Rachel and Jim Harper outside the condemned building that will now be sold. Photo / Bruce Falloon

Horowhenua District Council wants to ditch Foxton Court House Museum.

Foxton's old court house, an historical museum since 1998, will be sold, Horowhenua District Council decided at its October meeting.

The sale will come with strings attached. As it asks for expressions of interest from potential buyers, council will require the potential new owner to preserve the heritage and character of the building and undertake seismic strengthening.

The building was closed in 2014 because of concerns over its earthquake safety, which could cost up to $170,000.

I recently met with Tony Hunt and Jim and Sarah Harper to have a look inside, discuss the reasons of the closure and possibility re-using these premises as a museum.

The Foxton Historical Society hasn't been able to open the museum to the public for four years. As a result the society has also lost profile and membership, including support from the community.

A request for prospect will be issued shortly by the council. Foxton Historical Society is working on a submission.

Foxton Historical Society will hold a public meeting in early February, hoping that by this time they would have the details of the RFP from the council.

The future of all community halls in the district was one of three challenges the council consulted on for its Long Term Plan last year. It showed that 55 per cent of residents favour closure of some or all community halls.

Of the 140 people who responded two per cent wanted some halls to be retained, including the Foxton Court House Museum.

Council deferred its decision about the future of the museum to allow time to collect information for a report on the building's character and heritage.

The archives are still available to the public by appointment by contacting Tony Hunt- Ph 3636846 or Jim and Sarah Harper- Ph 0277778375.