The City has agreed to relocate the Station House Gallery and Gift Shop if grant funding is made available to finance the move.
Following a presentation by Pat Teti from the Station House Tuesday night, council unanimously agreed to approve the relocation but required that it be contingent on receiving a grant of $375,000. The remainder of the money to cover the move and building retrofit, the City says, will come from its gaming fund.
Teti told council that when a move was first proposed it wasn’t greeted with common support as some society members felt the site and the building were “inseparable.”
However, he went on to say the location, at the end of Oliver Street, that was “a focal point for people now is an industrial site that is unfriendly for children.”
Teti cited the new Official Community Plan — not yet adopted — which outlines an interest by the City in creating a central heritage district near the current museum and arts centre.
The City has identified the parking lot beside the RBC Royal Bank as a location for the gallery. According to the City, RBC is prepared to lease the vacant lot to the City for the amount equal to the municipal portion of the taxes owing on that property. Any agreement is subject to specific improvements such as sidewalk access and access to the lower parking lot. No lease arrangement has been made because neither the grant nor the City’s budget have been approved.
In a press release, the City says: “By combining these cultural facilities in one place it will encourage higher patronage and use of the facilities.”
At the meeting, Coun. Surinderpal Rathor told the delegation that he didn’t think the council could go wrong in doing what Teti was asking.
Coun. Sue Zacharias agreed saying, “I think we need to do everything we can to preserve it (gallery.)”
Coun Tom Barr said the gallery had his support only if the move is financially responsible. Coun. Geoff Bourdon voiced his support but stressed that the gallery must be able to support itself at its new location.
If relocated, the gallery project will include site preparation, building renovation and retrofitting, parking/landscaping including electrical and plumbing as part of a new HVAC system.
Mayor Kerry Cook noted that if the application for a grant isn’t successful the project would not proceed this year.
