A fundraising campaign for the Greater Vernon Cultural Centre is coming later this spring as a task force looks to cut into the cost of the $46 million project.
And at the Greater Vernon Advisory Committee (GVAC) meeting on Wednesday, a motion was passed to have the Cultural Centre put on the agenda at every meeting, so elected officials can keep a close eye on a project that has seen costs escalate since voters last assented to funding it back in 2018.
Tannis Nelson, Regional District of North Okanagan manager of culture, gave GVAC a brief verbal update on the Cultural Centre, saying the project is on schedule and Revery Architecture (hired in 2022) is currently developing construction documents.
"We are in the process of finalizing our (construction management) selection so we should have news to share with that in mind shortly," Nelson said.
Coldstream Coun. Pat Cochrane is on the Cultural Centre task force that's been developed for the project. He talked to GVAC about the awaited Cultural Centre fundraising campaign, saying it is gearing up and will be launched with an official kickoff "a bit later in the spring."
"We've already set up presentations for Rotary, we're meeting with the (Downtown Vernon Association), the (Greater Vernon) Chamber of Commerce, we're expecting to be present at the Farmer's Market in downtown Vernon in the spring ... it's going to be a lot happening over a fairly short period of time," Cochrane said.
The Coldstream councillor said when GVAC last passed a resolution recommending an increase in funding for the Cultural Centre, he decided to step forward and start a fundraising task force, which is currently up to 15 members and includes representatives of the Greater Vernon Museum and Archives and the Vernon Public Art Gallery, which will be the two main tenants of the Cultural Centre.
"We really want to see this project proceed and be successful, so we've been meeting every couple weeks," Cochrane said.
Cochrane had three asks for GVAC.
The first ask was to ensure that Nelson has the time and resources needed to commit to helping with the fundraising. He said it became clear to him "right away" how important she is to the project.
"The second ask is I hope all of you will support this project. Any opportunity you have to say positive words if you're interacting with members of the community, I would hope you'd be able to say I support this project and you should too and here's why," he said.
His third request was to have the Cultural Centre put on every GVAC agenda moving forward. He said it would allow Nelson to give regular updates and allow the public to know exactly where elected officials stand on the project.
With how long the project has gone on, Cochrane said the task force has heard from a number of people who are surprised the project is going ahead, which is one of the reasons he asked for GVAC's support.
"The fact that we're six and a half years into this project, it's no wonder that the public has no clue if it's happening or not, and quite frankly that falls to all of us," he said. "I've sat at this table and I'm as guilty as all the rest of you for not making sure that this project is moving forward in a timely manner."
GVAC member Teresa Durning said she supported the idea of having the Cultural Centre on every agenda "because as we're moving into probably a bumpier time with the economy, I think it's really important that we have our fingers on the pulse of what's happening."
The committee agreed to receive updates on the project at each of its meetings.
