Ōtaki Heritage is a charitable trust and is governed by a board of trustees, partly elected by local residents and partly appointed by mana whenua. To view the trust deed, click here.

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All our trustees are volunteers – we have no paid staff

Ōtaki Heritage was formed in 2023 by the amalgamation of the Ōtaki Historical Society and
the Ōtaki Heritage Bank Preservation Trust.

The Ōtaki Historical Society was set up in 1977 to collect, record and preserve the history of the Ōtaki area. It produced an annual
historical journal most years until 2023.

The Ōtaki Heritage Bank Preservation Trust was set up in 2003 with the main aim of
preserving the old bank building for historical and community purposes. The building now
houses the Ōtaki museum.

Chair

Deputy chair

Treasurer

Secretary

Mana whenua trustee

Elected trustees

We can only operate with the valuable assistance of our wonderful teams of volunteers.

Much of the trust’s work is carried out by sub-committees. Each sub-committee is chaired by a member of the Board of trustees, but the remaining members are largely volunteers.  We also have a team of volunteers who are rostered to welcome visitors to the museum and explain the current exhibition.

The Ōtaki Museum is housed in the former Bank of New Zealand building, built in 1918. As one of the most historic and prominent on Main Street it was the Council Chamber for the Ōtaki Borough Council from 1967 to 1989 and housed the local service centre of the Kapiti Coast District Council until 1998.