Let's petition for a museum

As published in The Guardian - August 8, 2012

Editor:
In response to the story 'New MLA office building being proposed' (The Guardian, Aug. 2, 2012), we need a legacy for all Islanders to enjoy, not just a few politicians and judges.

Let's support a real museum for all to see. There is a tremendous collection of P.E.I. artifacts stored, but not shown. Some Islanders don't even know they even exist, especially the younger generation.

Could you imagine the stories our grandparents could tell about an artifact that they used on the farm or in their businesses? Politicians tell stories - some true, some not - but live artifacts tell real stories about real life. Now that's a legacy.

The anniversary of P.E.I. is coming in 2014 to celebrate the past. Show it in a museum. My suggestion is to spend the so-called dollars to purchase the old experimental farm property and construct a museum that all can enjoy all year round. Set up field trips for our school children, bus tours for visitors and all. Maybe even our politicians would learn a thing or two. Come on, Islanders, petition for a museum, not another building full of hot air.

Frank Murphy,
Charlottetown

Provincial Museum Tops City's 2014 Wish List

Dave Stewart

Published on August 15, 2012 in The Guardian

The City of Charlottetown is in the process of putting together its wish list for the 2014 celebrations.

Right at the top of the list is going to be a provincial museum even though Premier Robert Ghiz shot down the idea earlier this month.

"I can tell you that number one on our list is a provincial museum in the city of Charlottetown,'' Mayor Clifford Lee says. "I know the province has said we're not going to get a provincial museum, (that) nobody is but we weren't going to let that sit aside and then discover some other municipality was given a provincial museum because Charlottetown didn't indicate (the request) on its wish list.''

Government is leaning towards building a new legislative office. It's believed it would cost $12 million to $15 million.

Ghiz said the proposed new building would be a lot less expensive than a provincial museum, which many believed would be the legacy project for the 150th anniversary of the Charlottetown conference in 1864.

"This is not a project, from my understanding, that's in the $50 million range — what a provincial museum would be under — but it's something that, if it can prove to be worthwhile, is something that will be explored and if it's good for the province I'm sure it will get its due consideration,'' Ghiz said.

The city will be submitting its list, which is now being called a working document, to P.E.I. 2014 Inc., the agency handling planning for the 2014 celebrations.

Lee said there's a reason why there's been so much talk surrounding a museum.

"Quite honestly, it seems to make sense to me that the province needs to have a provincial museum,'' the mayor said.

As for other items on the city's wish list, it will only say they are of cultural and historic significance, such as festivals, that will have impact on residents and visitors alike

Lee acknowledges the money may not be there for a big-ticket item.

"I think what the province is saying is that they can't afford a provincial museum and if that's the case then that's the case. At the same time, I think we need to ask the question, is there going to be a legacy?''

In 1964, for example, to celebrate the centennial anniversary of the 1864 conference, Queen Elizabeth II helped open the Confederation Centre of the Arts.

Lee doubts Islanders will support a new office building for MLAs as the big gift in 2014.

"That's not a legacy for the citizens of Charlottetown or for the citizens of P.E.I. That's a legacy for MLAs. I'm not sure that's what 2014 is all about.''

The city didn't budget any money this year for 2014. Should it decide to do so in the future, it would require council's approval.

dstewart@theguardian.pe.ca

twitter.com/DveStewart