This is a rendering of the proposed $70-million arts centre proposal. Kamloops residents will go to the polls to vote in a referendum on Apr. 4 (Image Credit: CHP Architects)

By Chad Klassen

KAMLOOPS CENTRE FOR THE ARTS

After missteps in 2015, City of Kamloops focusing on better education for arts centre referendum

Jan 28, 2020 | 5:01 PM

KAMLOOPS — It’s more than two months from a referendum on the Kamloops Centre for the Arts, and the City of Kamloops is working to properly inform the public about what the proposal is all about.

City staff has changed its approach from 2015 when the former arts centre proposal failed. This time, they’re talking with community groups and hosting two public information sessions next month.

On Tuesday, staff conducted the presentation in front of city council. Director of community and protective services Byron McCorkell told council that culture has always been front and centre.

In 2004, a new arts centre was identified in the cultural strategic plan. Overall, the city feels there’s a major gap in its delivery of the arts in Kamloops.

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“We’ve landed on the fact it’s no different than we did with the sports community,” said director of community and protective services Byron McCorkell. “We need facilities to be able to support the activities of our residents.”

It’s why staff are trying to educate the public about the latest $70 million arts centre proposal. Residents will be asked on Apr. 4: Are you in favour of borrowing up to $45 million to construct the Kamloops Centre for the Arts?

Director of corporate services Kathy Humphrey outlined a minimum of $22 million will come from fundraising, grants, and other levels of government.

“One of the questions that has come up a lot on the Let’s Talk pages and some of the other online forums we’ve been monitoring is, what happens if we don’t get the grants? What happens if it spends more money?”

Humphrey noted the city has reserves, and in the case there aren’t enough funds some of the elements of the centre would be scaled back.

She also clarified that following operating costs of $700,000 in the first year, the annual costs would level out to about $383,000 when more acts start being booked. It compares to operating budgets of more than $1 million at the Tournament Capital Centre and upwards of $700,000 annually to run the Sandman Centre.

This is the referendum question posed to Kamloops residents on Apr. 4 (Image Credit: CFJC Today)

The other concern has been parking, an issue that will be addressed in the presentation.

“There’s 3,500 stalls basically downtown,” said McCorkell. “So people walk. We used to have two vibrant movie theatres downtown, basically right where this theatre would go. It worked then, it will work now.”

In a parking study, staff tracked the number of cars downtown during the Blazers’ Teddy Bear toss night in December, when the Sandman Centre was sold out. McCorkell told council on Tuesday the two parkades were only half full.

Even councillor Mike O’Reilly, who has previously been concerned about a lack of parking stalls downtown, is convinced now there will be enough. He says it makes a parkade, a contentious issue in the 2015 proposal, unnecessary.

“To me, to spend $20 million to build a parkade, closer than 400 metres, and have it used only half the time doesn’t make sense,” said O’Reilly at council on Tuesday.

The city also emphasized the key part of this proposal, and that is no property tax increases.

The same presentation will be made at open houses on Feb. 12 at the Sports Centre Lounge at McArthur Island (6:30 to 8:30 p.m.) and Feb. 13 at the Valley First Lounge at the Sandman Centre (6:00 to 8:00 p.m.).