The repurposing of the Old School Museum in Myrtleford for an alternative use and reallocating its historical artefacts to somewhere such as the new information centre is one of many “opportunities” a consultant has identified for council to optimise its buildings into the future.

Council is currently seeking community feedback on its draft Community Infrastructure Needs Assessment (CINA) plan, which raises a range of possibilities across all townships within the shire to deliver on the primary objective of consolidation of council facilities.

Members of Myrtleford District Historical Society (MDHS) who run the Old School Museum in the council-owned building, and had not been consulted about the “possibility”, were among 60 people to attend an information session with council to discuss the draft CINA last week.

Speaking after the session, MDHS president Kerry Murtagh, said council accepted they should have engaged with the group in a greater capacity before releasing the draft CINA, regarding the museum’s role in the community.

“They recognise the museum is an integral part of our history and resource,” she said.

“[From here, council] are going to hold a joint meeting with the museums of the shire, in conjunction with the consultants and then everybody can actually talk about how they came to these recommendations.

“What we would like from the community is to go in and have their say on that (CINA) survey: anyone can fill out a form.”

Ms Murtagh said the artefacts are the museum’s property and not the property of council, which does not have any say in where they go or what happens to them.

Furthermore, to make any permanent changes, museum volunteers and council would have to follow Museums Australia guidelines.

“The artefacts are safe and they’re not going out of our hands,” Ms Murtagh said.

“There’s a heritage overlay on the building as well: there’s a huge procedure to go through and [no-one] can just decide to take out items or refurbish the site without consultation with Heritage Victoria.

"Thank you to all community members for their support."

A council spokesperson told the Myrtleford Times/Alpine Observer the community is encouraged to review all the findings and recommendations of the draft CINA - prepared by SGS Economics and Planning Pty Ltd - and provide feedback to council.

“Any final document will be subject to the consideration of submissions received as part of this draft consultation,” the spokesperson said.

“The Myrtleford Museum is a much-loved local facility which council officers very much appreciate both the importance of this collection and the hard work of local volunteers in interpreting and disseminating this significance to residents and visitors alike.

“This is an important document and a final CINA will inform all of council’s activities and investment in community and social infrastructure for many decades into the future.

“A final CINA will strengthen council’s capacity to plan efficiently, advocate effectively and secure external funding.

“The financial sustainability of council’s community and social infrastructure depends on the adoption of this evidence-based approach.”

Surveys on the draft CINA can be accessed online via: https://engage.alpineshire.vic.gov.au/community-infrastructure-needs-assessment or in print at the Old School Museum and Myrtleford Library and need to be submitted by 4 January 2026.