A New Home for South Canterbury Museum - Te Kura Marumaru
Timaru District Council is building a new home for South Canterbury Museum, a purpose-built facility on Barnard Street that will sit at the heart of a new cultural precinct in central Timaru, alongside the restored Theatre Royal and a connecting public laneway.
Construction is underway as part of the wider Theatre Royal and Museum project, with completion scheduled for December 2026.
A new name: Te Kura Marumaru
Te Rūnanga o Arowhenua have gifted a name for the new museum , Te Kura Marumaru, which was formally received by Timaru District Council at a recent council meeting.
The official name for the new venue is Te Kura Marumaru, South Canterbury Museum.
See the livestream of the council meeting here
What's being built?
The new museum is a purpose-built facility on the upper part of the Barnard Street site, designed to give South Canterbury's collection the space and environment it deserves. It includes:
A 580m² main exhibition gallery - Drawing on objects and stories from the Museum's existing collections to explore our local landscape and environment, Māori heritage, European settlement, and more recent social history.
An 80m² education room - A flexible space for learning programmes, school visits, meetings, talks, community events, and short-term displays.
A 200m² ground floor exhibition gallery - A dedicated space for a changing programme of local and travelling exhibitions, giving people a reason to return throughout the year.
The new building connects directly to the restored Theatre Royal via a new public laneway, creating a shared cultural precinct that links Barnard Street and Stafford Street. Together, the Museum, Theatre, and laneway form a connected space for people to explore history, art, and culture.
Where are we now?
The current South Canterbury Museum will close on Sunday 19 July 2025, as the team prepares to move exhibitions and public-facing programmes to the new Barnard Street facility. After that date, public programmes will be limited, but pop-up programmes will be offered during school holidays and as opportunities arise.
Ground and civil works on the museum site have been completed, with foundations now underway. Construction of the full building is progressing as part of the combined Theatre Royal and Museum project being delivered by Hawkins Ltd, with completion expected December 2026.
History of South Canterbury Museum
South Canterbury Museum has been telling the story of our region for more than 80 years.
The Museum was established in 1941 by the South Canterbury Historical Society, following the bequest of land and buildings on Perth Street by T.D. Burnett a local runholder and Member of Parliament. T.D. Burnett was a significant figure in South Canterbury life: a conservationist, a champion of high country pastoral lessees, and a man who left a lasting mark on the district. His wish was that any new building on the site be named Pioneer Hall a name honoured when the Historical Society oversaw the building of Pioneer Hall in 1966.
In 1988 a deed was signed transferring ownership of the Museum to the Timaru District Council, who have administered it ever since with ongoing support from the South Canterbury Historical Society.
The Museum has a geographical focus on the natural and human heritage of the South Canterbury region from the Rangitata River in the north to the Waitaki River in the south, and from the sea to the Southern Alps. Its collections built up primarily through donations and bequests since the early 1940s span natural history specimens, Māori artefacts, European settlement history, photographs, documents, archives, and an extensive costume and textile collection.
Among the collection's most beloved features is a replica of the aircraft designed by Timaru-born Richard Pearse, who is widely credited with achieving powered flight in 1903, months before the Wright Brothers.
Now, more than 80 years after T.D. Burnett's bequest made the Museum possible, South Canterbury's taonga are moving to a new home one built to care for the collection and share it with our community for generations to come.
History of the site
The Barnard Street site was previously occupied by the Olympia Hall, a prominent Edwardian building constructed in 1910 as a 2,000-seat multi-use venue designed by architect James Turnbull. It hosted silent movies, roller-skating, and major events including the 1909 South Canterbury Jubilee, before the New Zealand Army took it over in 1939 as a drill hall during World War II. The building was demolished in 2021 to make way for the current development.
Project timeline
July–September 2025 - Demolition and civil works begin on the Barnard Street site
February 2026 - Hawkins Ltd moves on site; main construction begins
April/May 2026 - Te Kura Marumaru gifted as the name for the new museum by Te Rūnanga o Arowhenua
December 2026 - Full project completion expected
Note: these images are indicative only; amendments to design features may vary from what is shown.
Last updated: 22 May 2026