Local Focus: The doors are still closed, but Rotorua Museum is open to suggestions

The planning stage of Rotorua Museum's seismic strengthening and redevelopment is almost over and staff are looking forward to the future, asking locals what they want to see when the museum re-opens.

"We're at a really exciting place, at 90 per cent detailed design," Rotorua Museum operations manager, Jo Doherty said.

"Which means we can get into building consent and get [the rebuild] under way next year."

In the meantime, the museum wants locals to have their say on how it will fill the new space through community events, online surveys and face-to-face meetings.

"One of the current trends in museums across the world is the concept of 'by and for the community'. If you want your museum to be relevant to the people that are of that community, then really, they need to have as much input as possible into the stories that we're telling."

Doherty also said they are going through a comprehensive consultation and engagement.

"[It's] quite unique, I think, in respect of even going to the community before we actually have any concepts about what we want to put into the museum. Then we can take those ideas back to the community and back to iwi and see if that's actually what they were expecting."

One future exhibition is certain, and it will focus on B Company of the 28th Māori Battalion. Te Arawa partnership advisor Clark Pirika is "leading the charge".

"There are two kaupapa that are currently under way," Pirika said.

"One of those kaupapa relates to our taonga, and the other relates to B Company Māori Battalion. A wonderful kaupapa that gives us an opportunity to link up with our iwi. It allows us to reconnect."

Pirika hopes the permanent display will build on previous exhibits which were also focused on the B Company men, but how the exhibition will look is up to locals and iwi.

"This kaupapa has been on our plate for some time, and we've had conversations with the B Company History Trust. We're looking to work alongside them and others in that space like David Stone - who's working on returning unclaimed medals."

To get the display off the ground, the museum and B Company History Trust is seeking help with funding applications through their Facebook page, and they want to hear stories from whānau who had loved ones in B Company.

"We want families to tell their stories. So, to do that, they need to contact us. We are more than happy to take on any questions and queries that they may have, and we really want to connect up with all the families that have tūpuna as part of the B Company Māori Battalion."

He believes these stories have a lasting legacy.

"If you think about how our country has now taken on celebrating Anzac [...] it's become really huge. The participation of our younger ones, to me, is a testament to how our people - in fact, all people - appreciate what our tūpuna did back in the day.

"You're really only talking about 3 to 4000 soldiers that went across, and the deeds that they achieved, they're just monumental. They were bigger than life. So much so that the other side acknowledged the warrior spirit, the fighting tenacity, and just how intelligent our 28th Māori Battalion was.

"If we're telling these stories and leaving that legacy for our children, for our mokopuna, that's a great thing I reckon - because they're our stories, they're their stories, so let's tell them."

Both Pirika and Doherty want the museum to reflect Rotorua back to its people, in all its glory. It's now up to Rotorua to decide what that glory looks like.

"Museums contribute to our sense of identity and belonging," Doherty said. "So, I would hope our community and new immigrants, new residents, would see and feel a sense of themselves in our museum, and feel that they've contributed to what the place has become."