After hearing from three people in its public forum, all of who urged the council to take more time to consider the issue and seek public input, the council decided to move the item from its public-excluded agenda into public meeting yesterday.
It then unanimously decided to "set aside" the de-accessioning process (followed to remove items from the museum's collection and dispose of them) and all matters with respect to the collection be reconsidered by its community services committee.
That committee will now decide what process it will use to gather more information about the collection and about how to involve the public, then make a recommendation to council whether to retain or dispose of it.
That will not happen immediately.
The collection, started in the mid-1980s, now has about 1000 pieces dating back to the 1930s and valued at $86,000.
It was started with a bequest from a Waitaki Girls' High School history teacher, the late Ivy Pollard, and boosted with items donated by the pottery's makers, New Zealand Insulators Ltd, at Temuka.
Cr Jim Hopkins said there were good reasons to keep the collection and arguably good reasons not to keep it, but the wider community needed to be involved in reaching a decision.
Cr Peter Garvan suggested the collection needed to be marketed and put on display so people got the chance to enjoy it.
Cr Gary Kircher said that, while the collection did not meet the museum's policy of collecting "local items", it was nationally significant and there was a call to have it as a stand-alone exhibition to attract people to Oamaru.
Cr Struan Munro said more time was needed to fully discuss the future of the collection, while Cr Helen Stead encouraged people to make their views on its exhibition known.
Waitaki Mayor Alex Familton, who moved the motions shifting the item into public session and setting aside the de-accessioning process, saw many alternatives for the collection.
The issue was first considered by the community services committee in public-excluded session on May 5, but was revealed by the ODT on May 7.
The reasons for privacy were commercial sensitivity and allowing time to consult donors.
Community services manager Thunes Cloete said no donors wanted items back and all agreed the collection should be retained as a whole.
