Image Credit: Station One Architects

By James Peters

Performing Arts Centre

Kamloops council approves $7M detailed design for performing arts centre

Feb 6, 2024 | 3:51 PM

KAMLOOPS — The proposed performing arts centre in downtown Kamloops is one step closer to reality.

At its regular meeting Tuesday (Feb. 6), council voted to complete the validation and detailed design phase for the centre.

This step will result in a ‘Class A’ estimate, meaning the project will be ‘shovel ready’ and qualify for provincial and federal grant funding that may be available. While there has been some planning done for the proposal, it is currently considered to be at a ‘Class D’ estimate of $120 million.

The cost for this level of planning is $7 million, which the City of Kamloops will fund with its capital reserve. Corporate Services Director David Hallinan says the reserve could then be replenished either through grant funding or short-term borrowing.

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Mayor Reid Hamer-Jackson questioned why so much money was required from the city when local philanthropist Ron Fawcett has already fronted architectural work for the project, along with the Kelson Hall building that would ultimately be attached to the arts centre.

Councillor Mike O’Reilly, who chairs the Build Kamloops Select Committee, responded that the proposal will go through integrated project management, which saved the city when it recently renovated the Canada Games Pool.

“That came in on time and under budget, and that’s because we put the money in up front so we knew what we were getting into as a municipality,” said O’Reilly. “That made the project shovel ready… and we received close to $10 million in grants for that.”

The project is being planned for city-owned land on Seymour Street at Fourth Avenue. It would include an 1,100-seat theatre and a black box theatre space, in addition to other spaces for various arts groups in Kamloops.

Detailed design is expected to be complete around the end of 2025, with a two-year construction timeline to follow.

Image Credit: Station One Architects

Meantime, Fawcett says the project could be in line for an eight-figure grant.

Fawcett showed council architectural renderings of a performing arts centre proposed for Seymour Street and Fourth Avenue, attached to Kelson Hall.

The renderings displayed at council Tuesday showed a building with a large, wood-featured lobby available for multiple uses. Fawcett said he believes the amount of wood used in the plan could qualify the building for a $12-million grant from the Canadian Wood Council.*

He added the cost should be spread out over the 50-year life of the facility, making it not difficult to bear. Fawcett added building the arts centre will have myriad spinoff benefits for the community.

“You talk to the hospital, the university and large businesses, getting high-end staff and doctors to come to Kamloops will be much easier with this building — possibly a doctor for everyone,” said Fawcett. “This facility will surely be a large incentive to move to Kamloops.”

Image Credit: Station One Architects

*On Wednesday, the Canadian Wood Council reached out to CFJC Today to say they believe Fawcett may have been referring to a grant through Natural Resources Canada’s Green Construction through Wood program.