Image Credit: Kamloops Centre for the Arts Society

By James Peters

Two & Out

PETERS: Cities — like individuals — can support both sports and the arts

Jan 31, 2020 | 11:21 AM

IT WAS INEVITABLE THAT, as the arts centre debate heats up in Kamloops, the comparison to sports facilities is made.

We are the Tournament Capital of Canada, after all, so we have stitched sports onto our identity as a badge of honour.

The comparison was brought into even greater focus this week as council gave the green light to a huge renovation for its crown jewel sports facility.

$13.5 million to revamp the Tournament Capital Centre seems like a pittance compared to the $70 million for an arts centre.

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But it really shouldn’t come down to one versus the other.

Saying a city needs to focus on sports facilities at the expense of arts facilities is like saying a person cannot be both a sports fan and someone who appreciates the arts.

The onus is on the arts community to help people who think the arts are for the elite, the wealthy, the snobs, to demonstrate they are not.

If you like music of any genre, you would probably enjoy a concert at an arts centre.

If you like to laugh, you would probably enjoy a comedy show at an arts centre.

If you like to see stories played out on TV, you would probably enjoy them played out in front of you at an arts centre.

It’s not just for those well-versed in the history of Italian opera or who can recite verbatum the scripts for every Rogers and Hammerstein play.

The argument about the arts being for the rich is particularly ridiculous, especially when posed against the costs of putting a child into almost any sports program.

The sales offensive arts centre proponents need to mount has several fronts.

One of the biggest is convincing those who take pride in their blue collar, Budweiser and hockey identities that their lives, too, could be enriched by what an arts centre would bring to Kamloops.

Hockey is for everyone, so says the NHL. It’s a marketing line, but it’s one that has resonated.

The arts community has not yet convinced the public that the arts are for everyone, even though they are.

That should be a big focus if they hope to get their endorsement on April 4.

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Editor’s Note: This opinion piece reflects the views of its author, and does not necessarily represent the views of CFJC Today or the Jim Pattison Broadcast Group.