October 17, 2012
Trust seeks $10m for Waitangi facelift
The Waitangi National Trust has launched a charitable foundation to raise $10 million to refurbish the Treaty Grounds.
Chair Pita Paraone says it wants to complete the work, including new museum, in time for the 175th anniversary of the signing of the Treaty in 2015.
Under the terms of the gift of the land to the nation by former governor general Lord Bledisloe, the trust can't ask the government for money to maintain the place where New Zealand's founding document was signed.
Mr Paraone says the Waitangi Charitable Foundation, co-chaired by Sir Don McKinnon and Sir Tumu Te Heuheu, will seek public, corporate and individual donations.
He says the museum will improve interpretation of the site and allow the display of delicate artefacts and taonga, which could include original Treaty documents.