IT WILL be open arms and open doors at the Nangwarry Forestry and Logging Museum this week following the easing of COVID-19 restrictions across the state.
Museums are among the facilities permitted to reopen on June 1, as Premier Steven Marshall accelerates the reopening of the South Australia.
Long-serving museum volunteer Victor Smith said phase two of South Australia’s easing of coronavirus restrictions – which was due to start on June 8 – was welcome after a six week forced closure.
Mr Smith said he was keen to resume business as usual at the volunteer-run museum, which has been able to stay afloat financially due to sub-leasing a portion of the facility each week.
He said the business rented a space to once-a-week doctors.
“If we did not have that we would have had no income for the museum at all,” Mr Smith said.
“We will survive this, we will make sure of it.”
Mr Smith said the COVID-19 restrictions had a broad effect on the facility, including a dip in sponsorship due to mandatory and voluntary business closures.
“We are at half of our sponsorship capacity for this year so it will be a struggle,” he said.
Mr Smith said the forestry museum would rely on Limestone Coast residents and intrastate tourists as restrictions remain on interstate travel.
“We want to see people from around the Limestone Coast come in and support us,” he said.
“We need this support and only those in the state can give it to us as there are none of our regular interstate visitors.”
Visitors must still adhere to the social distancing guidelines and personal hygiene requirements upon the museum’s reopening.
“We will have hand sanitiser on hand of course and we will make sure visitors are social distancing,” Mr Smith said.
“We have plenty of room inside for around four visitors at a time.”
