Government asked for $10m to help build Wellington Town Hall music hub

Taxpayers are being asked to contribute $10 million towards a proposed national music hub in Wellington's Town Hall.

The funds will be in addition to $90m Wellington ratepayers are forking out for the earthquake strengthening of the 114-year-old Town Hall building.

The music hub – a partnership between Victoria University Wellington (VUW), New Zealand Symphony Orchestra (NZSO) and the Wellington City Council – has been touted as the national home of musical excellence, with the Town Hall as its focal point when it reopens in 2021.

The hub will incorporate the adjacent Municipal Office Building and nearby Michael Fowler Centre.

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The first stage of the Town Hall project will see the council invest $90m for earthquake strengthening and restoration of the main auditorium, the debating chamber and Ilott Room, to provide rehearsal and performance spaces for the New Zealand School of Music (NZSM) and NZSO.

The second stage of the project, which had been approved in principle by the university council, was to create a "nationally significant" centre of musical excellence through the use of the Municipal Office Building, which was earmarked as a teaching and administrative space.

The university has said the total cost of the project is forecast to be $187m.

In June 2017, the council approved the Town Hall strengthening upgrade, which will include re-piling and base isolation. In July, Victoria University and the NZSO launched a campaign to raise $30m for the music centre.

The fundraising drive is being headed by former Wellington Mayor Kerry Prendergast, who is a Victoria University of Wellington Foundation Trustee.

On Thursday she confirmed the Government had been asked for $10m to support the NZSO, which is an autonomous Crown Entity.

The money would be used to fit out the NZSO portion of the project, she said.

The Government was aware the funds would not be needed this year, she said.

"I am confident we will get Government support."

The rest of the fundraising was going "really positively," she said.

The Thomas George Macarthy Trust had contributed a significant grant, while funds had come in from a number of other donors that had not been made public yet, she said.

An application had also been made for a Lottery grant.

There was enough in the fundraising bucket for the council to feel "confident" about the NZSO and school of music, she said.

A spokeswoman for Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern, who is also minister of arts, culture and heritage, said she was aware of the desire to get government funding, but "no decisions have been made at this stage".

Meanwhile, the city council is still in discussions with VUW and the NZSO regarding the future of Municipal Office Building, which is the council's current HQ.

The university was given the right of refusal to buy the building but the offer lapsed on December 30, 2017 with VUW not taking up the opportunity, citing concerns around the impact of earthquakes.

Work to secure unreinforced masonry on the Town Hall is scheduled to get underway in early May, while a main contractor will be selected later this year to start the main upgrade.