The fate of a new performing arts space in downtown Victoria will be decided today, when Victoria council considers an application for a $250,000 grant.
Council, sitting as committee of the whole, will debate the merits of The Other Guise Theatre Company’s grant application, which is seen as pivotal in ensuring the venue — in a former grocery store on Johnson Street — goes ahead.
“This venue is a legacy project that will pay it forward in terms of fostering arts and culture in the city for decades to come,” said Matthew Payne, Other Guise executive director.
“If we cut the things that make downtown a vibrant, interesting, viable place, we have so much farther to go to bring them back later.”
The goal for the space at 716 Johnson St. is to become a kind of community arts hub. The city grant would be a key part of fundraising efforts to repay a $1.8-million loan the theatre company was given in 2022 when it bought the former Tomley Market building.
Kate Kempton, who provided the forgivable loan to purchase the building, is now ill and has been forced to recall the loan.
The Other Guise Theatre Society signed an agreement last month with Thrive Impact Fund that will provide up to $400,000 in flexible debt financing.
The Thrive Impact Fund invests in and supports non-profit, co-operative and for-profit social enterprises that generate social, environmental or cultural benefits.
Payne has said if the city approves the $250,000 award, the theatre will only have to raise another $600,000, now that Thrive has come aboard.
The project would see the existing building converted into three performance spaces and two rehearsal spaces, as well as office work spaces. The venue would be tailored to smaller professional productions that struggle to find affordable places to produce and present work.
City staff, who have been working with The Other Guise, proposed five options for council to consider, including issuing the grant as a forgivable loan, registering a mortgage against 716 Johnson St. to secure the investment and denying the grant.
“Council did their due diligence and asked for security on the grant. Staff and Other Guise have provided a pathway to that security,” said Payne. “The value of the property provides financial security and our signature on a forgivable loan or grant with conditions is our commitment to council and our community.”
The property was most recently assessed at just over $1.9 million.
Payne said the arts venue could be up and running by the end of March.
“Our architect is actively working with the city’s planning and development department to rezone so we can host events there.
>>> To comment on this article, write a letter to the editor: [email protected]
