Nga Taonga and the Avalon archive facility

K.I. Davis made this Official Information request to Department of Internal Affairs

The request was successful.

From: K.I. Davis

Dear Department of Internal Affairs,

Thank you for answering my earlier OIA request regarding the new Wigram archive facility. In the released documents there was an email (#4740995DA, A85, 7.6.16) from Rebecca Elvy, Chief Executive of Nga Taonga Sound & Vision to Marilyn Little Chief Archivist of Archives New Zealand regarding the use by Nga Taonga of the Avalon facilities and vaults which had been housing the TVNZ collection.

I am trying to understand the basis by which Nga Taonga (a private charitable trust) can make use of the Avalon facilities (a taxpayer funded facility). I would like to find out more about the occupancy agreement, its background, and the future of the Avalon facility.

Therefore, I would like to request:

All documentation from December 2015 onward (including correspondence, reports etc) in relation to Nga Taonga's occupancy of the former TVNZ facility and vaults at Avalon. I would also like to request a copy of the signed occupancy agreement.

Yours faithfully,

K.I. Davis

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From: OIA
Department of Internal Affairs

Dear K.I Davies

Thank you for your request for information under the Official Information Act 1982, received by The Department of Internal Affairs on 10 January 2017.

The Department of Internal Affairs will seek to communicate its decision to you on your request for information within 20 working days, which is by 13 February2017.

Please accept this email as confirmation of receipt of your request.

Kind Regards

Rosemary Dhlakama | Advisor Governance
[email address]
The Department of Internal Affairs Te Tari Taiwhenua
147 Lambton Quay | PO Box 805, Wellington 6140, New Zealand | www.dia.govt.nz
  

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From: OIA
Department of Internal Affairs


Attachment KI Davies Transfer Letter to MCH.pdf
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Dear K.I. Davies

Thank you for your request for information under the Official Information Act 1982, received by The Department of Internal Affairs on 10 January 2017.

The Department is transferring your request to the Ministry for Culture and Heritage as the arrangements for Ngā Taonga Sound & Vision's access to Avalon are made with the Ministry.
Please find attached formal letter advising you of this transfer.

Kind Regards

Rosemary Dhlakama | Advisor, Governance
Strategy and Governance (S&G)
The Department of Internal Affairs Te Tari Taiwhenua
Direct Dial: +64 4 494 5769| Extn: 5769 |

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From: K.I. Davis

Dear Rosemary and Harley,

Thank you for your quick reply. I'm looking forward to hearing from the Ministry.

Yours sincerely,

K.I. Davis

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From: Ministerial and OIA Enquiries


Attachment Signed OIA response.pdf
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Attachment Document for release MOU Access to TVNZ Archive Collection.pdf
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Attachment Documents for release Excerpted reports Taonga and briefings from the Ministry for Culture and.pdf
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Dear K I Davis,

Please find attached the response to your request for information,
transferred from the Department of Internal Affairs to the Ministry for
Culture and Heritage on 19 January 2017.

 

Regards,

 

Ministerial Services

Manatū Taonga - Ministry for Culture and Heritage
Public Trust Building, 131 Lambton Quay

 

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From: K.I. Davis

Dear Ministerial and OIA Enquiries,

Thank you for your prompt reply to my OIA request.

From my reading of the documents, The License to Occupy, read in conjunction with the Memorandum of Understanding between the Ministry for Culture and Heritage and Nga Taonga defines the “Archive Collection” held at the Avalon facility as the Television New Zealand Archive.

It does not identify other collections held by Nga Taonga, namely the 50,000+ physical items in the Sound Archives collection currently in Christchurch nor the Film Archive collections in Wellington.

Additionally the “Memorandum of Understanding – Access to the TVNZ Archive Collection” between the Ministry and DIA, states that DIA grants access to the Avalon facility to the Ministry [who in turn grants it to Nga Taonga] to preserve and manage the [TVNZ] Archive Collection, and that the fixtures and equipment at Avalon are to be used in connection with reasonable use of the [TVNZ] Archive Collection, again with no mention of using the facilities for housing or working on other collections.

I do not see any requests from Nga Taonga to the Ministry or DIA in the released documents to use the Avalon facility for the permanent housing of non-TVNZ collections, so this confirms to me that Nga Taonga HAS NOT requested, nor been given consent from the Ministry or DIA to permanently use the Avalon facility for non TVNZ Archive related activities.

I also note that in the License to Occupy, Nga Taonga - as Archive Manager - may only undertake “minor activities” (such as painting a wall) without the consent of DIA.

The absence of any requests from Nga Taonga in the released OIA documents says to me that the Ministry and DIA are completely unaware of Nga Taonga’s plan to relocate thousands of physical non TVNZ items from Christchurch and Auckland to the Avalon facility, that you have no knowledge of the relocation of staff to Avalon (to work on non TVNZ material) and that you have no knowledge of the proposed construction of new spaces at the Avalon facility to undertake non TVNZ activities.

Thank you for clarifying all of this.

Yours sincerely,

K.I. Davis

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From: K.I. Davis

Dear Ministerial and OIA Enquiries,

A kind person has just pointed out to me that the MoU you have released only contains every 2nd page of the document (page 2, 4, 6...)

Can you please re-scan and send the full document

Yours sincerely,

K.I. Davis

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From: Ministerial and OIA Enquiries


Attachment Response to clarification to OIA responses K I Davis 22 February.pdf
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Attachment MOU Access to TVNZ Archive Collection new scan.pdf
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Dear K I Davis,

 

Please find attached a follow-up response to your email seeking
clarification; and a revised scan of the Memorandum of Understanding.

Kind regards,

 

Ministerial Services

Manatū Taonga - Ministry for Culture and Heritage
Public Trust Building, 131 Lambton Quay

 

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