The funding is part of the Otago Community Trust’s March 2026 funding round, which distributed $813,940 to 35 organisations across the region.
Museum curator Dr Roz McKechnie said the society would use the grant to start a critical stage of the project.
"We applied for about $32,000 to get artefacts that are stored upstairs in an asbestos contaminated area cleaned," she said.
"So they’ve given us the $10,000 towards that, and we still have the remainder to find."
The museum has a considerable number of items in storage that cannot be handled due to contamination risk and, while cleaning them was a priority, it would also allow assessment and decisions about which items should be retained.
"A lot of the items need to be de-accessioned or assessed. And of course, we can’t touch them ... So, the cleaning process really needs to happen as soon as possible so we can get all that sorted."
Dr McKechnie thanked the trust on behalf of the museum and said the artefacts needed to be treated first and then relocated to safe, alternative storage, which had already been identified, before asbestos removal from the building itself could go ahead.
The former Ford Motors garage in Renfrew St, which houses the museum’s collection, has age-related issues including wet and dry rot, rusted framing and sub-code wiring and toilets.
The refurbishment or replacement of the 71-year-old building has been a concern for the historical society since 2008.
