Delta's fishing and farming heritage should play a big role in any new municipal museum.
That's what longtime resident Doug Massey had to say about Delta's intention to relocate the museum from the former municipal hall building in Ladner Village.
"As you know we have been trying to establish a location to display the history of the people involved in the commercial fishing industry to no avail. We are hoping that you would include a representative from our society in your deliberations," Massey stated in a letter to Mayor Lois Jackson this summer.
Over a couple of years ago, the former municipal politician helped form a group now called the Delta Fishing and Heritage Society.
The group originally eyed the Delta-owned
Seven Seas fish plant building or the old Brackman-Ker building on Chisholm Street as potential locations for historical displays or an interpretive centre. However, the Brackman-Ker building collapsed into the harbour, while the municipality has decided to sell the Seven Seas site.
The group has also been looking for a permanent home for two old wooden fish boats - the Persian Fisher and Georgia Star - which were donated by local fishing families. The society wants to consolidate the storage of the boats into a single, dry land location where they can be repaired and restored for public display.
Massey sees the plan to relocate the museum as a potential opportunity, although it's not clear at this point where the museum will end up, let alone what the new facility would look like.
Not long after Delta Museum and Archives
Society members made a presentation to the civic heritage advisory committee earlier this summer expressing their desire for a new facility, MP Kerry-Lynne Findlay made a federal funding announcement promising major dollars to help the municipality renovate the current museum building. That work is to begin next year.
The museum will have to move out, regardless, for the renovations and the only thing certain at this point is that it won't be moving back once those upgrades are done.
Massey wrote to Jackson reminding her of his group's efforts, saying that a location for the new museum should be within the Ladner waterfront. He said it best reflects the history of both the fishing and farming industries. He added it would go a long way in establishing a point of interest within the Ladner business community.
"We wish to make it clear that our priority is to find a location to retain and display the many artifacts and family histories that are available to us. The present facilities at the Delta Museum are unable to accommodate them," he said.
Massey recently expressed frustration to the Optimist about the mayor's response, which in a reply letter stated, "Needless to say, a consideration of this magnitude is an extremely expensive undertaking. In as much as we would all love to have unlimited funds to retain our heritage monuments in Delta, we must husband the limited resources of taxpayers' dollars."
Jackson noted she forwarded Massey's correspondence to parks and recreation director Ken Kuntz, who has been charged with the oversight of the museum, and municipal CEO George Harvie for their consideration.
