The project yesterday received a multimillion-dollar boost.
Community Trust South announced it has committed $5 million to Project 1225 which included the delivery of a new Southland museum collection storage facility in Tisbury and a dedicated tuatara enclosure in Queens Park.
Trust chairwoman Kirsty Pickett said it was pleased to be able to support such a meaningful project for the community.
Invercargill City and Project 1225 lead councillor Grant Dermody welcomed the boost but said the council would still need to consider an increase on the project budget.
A report will be presented at today’s council meeting asking councillors to consider a "construction" budget increase of $6,009,682.
"The budget adjustment has come about for a number of key reasons: cost inflation ‘to build’ a building of ‘higher amenity and quality’ to our brief and the post-Covid 19 impacts that have not resolved as quickly as the industry expected."
This would bring the total cost of the project to $71.5 million.
Mr Dermody said the previous budget did not reflect the rise in the cost of living, but he believed the new figure would work until the completion of the project.
"I am confident about that — the project team has done a heck of a lot of work around the costing of it so now I am pretty confident the number we’ve got it is accurate.It’s not gonna just keep on going and blowing out ..."
The design concept for the new museum was released last week and council will also consider today a new name for the development.
