The words of hundreds of residents in the Ashburton District will be captured in a time capsule being included in the new library and civic building, Te Pātaka a kā Tuhituhi and Te Waharoa a Hine Paaka.

Residents from the hills to the seas are being invited to hand write on a slip of paper what they like best about our district – the responses will be curated and preserved in the capsule, which will be opened in 2078.

People and Facilities Group Manager Sarah Mosley said Council had adopted a list of items that would be contained in the time capsule itself.

“Taking part in the best thing campaign is the way that members of the community can also participate in the project. We hope that residents will visit any Council facility in May and June and fill in the simple form.”

Council referred the selection of items to the Mid Canterbury Heritage working group and they have carefully selected and prioritised information and objects that represent our district’s built and natural environment, our people and our lives today - while also fitting in a relatively small box.

“We are going to include photographs of landmarks, like the Rakaia salmon; maps, information about our population and snapshots of businesses and community groups at the time.

“For our best thing campaign, people are being asked to write their name and age, and what they like most about living in our district. We’re hoping for responses from people across the age range, so residents of the future can get a good, positive sense of how people felt about living here in 2023.

“It’s exciting to be preserving a unique slice of our social history this way. Every comment will collated and then printed onto archival paper so it does not disintegrate with time.”

Time capsule forms will be available at the Ashburton Public Library, Ashburton Art Gallery and Museum, EA Networks Centre, Mt Hutt Memorial Hall and Council’s administration building on Baring Square West from Friday 5 May until Friday 30 June. Forms can be completed on site and dropped into collection boxes at the facilities.

The time capsule will be incorporated into a special panel of the ground floor of the building.

Councillors said opening the capsule in 2078 would acknowledge 200 years since the formation of both the Ashburton County in 1876 and Ashburton Borough in 1878.