Replacing roof will cost $500,000-$1m

Otago Museum facilities manager Chris Patchett takes a closer look at deteriorating roof tiles on...
Otago Museum facilities manager Chris Patchett takes a closer look at deteriorating roof tiles on the museum’s original building in Great King St. PHOTOS: CRAIG BAXTER
Parts of a more than 50-year-old composite tile roof protecting the Otago Museum's original building in Great King St are showing clear signs of deterioration.

The museum faces having to spend at least $500,000 to replace the roof of the heritage-protected building, which opened in 1877.

That figure would rise to $1million if slate was used, a recent museum report said.

Museum facilities manager Chris Patchett said this week some discussions had already taken place over the roof with Heritage New Zealand.

Some problems with existing tiles had already produced a few leaks, and replacing the roof with other materials would also better protect the interior of the building, and its heritage-protected status, Mr Patchett said.

The current composite tiles had been installed in the early 1960s, and deterioration was starting to speed up, he said.

Over the next few years, the museum faced trying to fund several such "major capital maintenance projects", including between an estimated $400,000 and $738,000 to replace the roof on the museum's popular Tropical Forest facility.

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