MICA seeks to get private museum operators to co-invest in historical sites

The government hopes to get private operators of "Battle Box" at Fort Canning Park as well as the ammunition store at Labrador Park interested in co-investing in the historical sites. 

Senior Minister of State for Information, Communications and the Arts, Grace Fu, said this in parliament today, in response to a query on whether the ministry will help to fund and upkeep the two historical sites. 

MP Christopher de Souza had also asked if the ministry will be open to raising the quantum of the sites. 

Ms Fu said the National Heritage Board has the Heritage Industry Incentive Programme where it funds up to 50 per cent of qualifying costs incurred, capped at $100,000 per project. 

But so far, there have not been any such requests. 

The reason for the co-investment is really that we'd like to see private museum operators taking an interest in having a stake in the site so that there's an investment, there's ownership of the exhibition.

 As to whether MICA or NHB will review or reconsider the significance of the two sites, and elevate it to something else, at this moment, we have gone through the evaluation programme, and it did not meet the standards required by the preservation of monuments board criteria.