FROM a distance of more than 500 kilometres away, the debate over the relocation of Sydney's Powerhouse Museum has seemed odd.
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The NSW government has been determined to shift the showcase of technology from its home at an old electric tram power station in near-CBD Ultimo to Parramatta in the western suburbs.
The toing and froing over the matter has been running since 2015 and then Arts Minister Don Harwin unveiled a final design for a new museum last December.
The bill for the relocation has been put at $1.5 billion and certainly the value of that outlay has to be questioned.
This is a spin-off from the project that is good news for our part of the world, hence Mr Clancy's enthusiasm.
With much of the Border community unable to travel to Sydney it is terrific that residents will be able to appreciate firsthand some of the treasures of a trove that dates back to the 1800s.
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But at the same time, the worth of moving the Powerhouse out of a central location and historic site is dubious.
Opposition arts spokesman Walt Secord made some reasonable observations to The Border Mail on Monday.
"We've seen $46 million alone spent on consultants for the Powerhouse move and not a single shovel has cracked the soil at Parramatta," Mr Secord said.
"That money would go a long way for museums in the Riverina."
Yes the Albury LibraryMuseum will do a fine job in tending and displaying the items it receives.
However, having a NSW-wide dispersal of exhibits is the least the government could do to provide a dividend for country taxpayers seeing their money piped into a mammoth museum in Parramatta.