Saint John Theatre Company receives $12M from feds for courthouse transformation
Goal is to turn 200-year-old building into modern performance space
The Saint John Theatre Company is getting $12 million from the federal government for the group's Sydney Street courthouse project, signaling the start of the project's construction phase.
"We took ownership the first week of March 2020 and then we shut down for COVID just a few days later," said Stephen Tobias, executive director of the theatre company.
"So at that point, everything was derailed for several years. We're back in the game. This funding certainly doesn't represent the end of the project, but it certainly represents the beginning and aggressive start of construction and development."
The project, now more than five years in the works, aims to transform the 200-year-old, long-vacant courthouse across from King Square park into a modern performance space.
The three-story, modern addition incorporates an opaque glass façade. (Submitted by the Saint John Theatre Company)
The money comes from the Green and Inclusive Community Buildings program, which funds environmentally conscious retrofit projects, and brings the project closer to its goal of $30 million.
"Several years ago, this project, based on the current designs, [was] valued at $17.8 million. The designs have not changed since then," said Tobias.
"What has changed is the price of steel, the cost of labour, the availability of materials. And so like all construction projects in the country and frankly probably in the entire world, we've gone through a range of inflationary pressures on this and now we're looking at a $30-million project."
The theater company is contributing more than $13 million to the project and the City of Saint John is contributing $818,000, according to a media release.
Tobias said construction is expected to begin in spring 2025, with a potential opening date in late 2027 or early 2028.
Project will preserve city landmark
Mayor Donna Reardon said the building will be the "No. 1" place to be in Saint John.
"A huge credit to the Saint John Theatre company for their dedication to the arts and to preserving this landmark here on King Square," Reardon said.
"They're going to reinvent and reimagine this incredible piece of our history, creating an interactive and dynamic space where the stories, our stories and everyone's story can be told through all the different facets of the arts."
Saint John Mayor Donna Reardon says the theatre company will reinvent a piece of the city's history with the project. (Nipun Tiwari/CBC)
The building fell out of use after the law courts at Peel Plaza were constructed over a decade ago. In 2017, the province introduced a bill to repeal a nearly 200-year-old trust for the courthouse so the historic building could be developed for other uses.
The Saint John Theatre Company acquired the building in 2020.
The upgrades will be significant, with the company planning a three-storey addition to the courthouse while preserving much of its historic architecture.
A space for mid-range events
The renovated space will be home to the Atlantic Repertory Company, which provides paid experience and opportunities to emerging young theatre artists with ties to Atlantic Canada.
The building will have three main levels. The first will be a public space with a café and bar that will be open to the public, regardless of whether or not there is a performance underway.
The second floor, what was once the courtroom where jury trials were held pre-2013, will be the theater space and will have a seating capacity of 220.
Saint
John Theatre Company director Stephen Tobias says other theatre spaces
in the city are either too large or too small for certain productions. (Nipun Tiwari/CBC)
The theatre company uses the nearby 900-seat Imperial Theatre and 100-seat Princess Street-based BMO theatre for performances. But the city doesn't have a space for more mid-range productions, making the courthouse "just the right solution," Tobias said.
"The BMO studio is too small for that kind of work," he said.
"And Imperial Theatre is an amazing venue that we use one month out of every year, but it's not really useful. It's too big for that kind of unique professional theatre work that the Atlantic Repertory Company allows us to create."
For the growth of the Atlantic Repertory Company program, which is the professional development wing, Tobias said there's a need for a "producing theatre that has the capacity to build and create work, and then showcase that work for an appropriate-sized audience."
The third floor will be a rehearsal space.
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30 Comments
David Amos
Methinks somebody is trying to buy votes with our money N'esy Pas?
Reply to David Amos
Matt Steele
Better get to the taxpayer funded money trough quickly as the FEDERAL Liberal Party is imploding from within , and can't last much longer . Very ironic that they are going to spend 30 MILLION on this building , and a 100 feet away in Kings Square people are sleeping rough on park benches . It is amazing how far Canada has fallen in the past NINE years .
Ronald Miller
Reply to Matt Steele
The left will continue to blame the premier for anything going wrong, for 2 more days, at that point a metamorphosis will occur before our very eyes and the blame for things that have been Canadian wide shift to where the blame should have been the entire time. Although some will have a hard time figuring out where to put this blame with a Liberal in Ottawa, although not for long it appears.
Dan Lee
Reply to Matt Steele
yes esp Higgs for helping irving with his hydro or buying another piece of land in fton from........ to build a courthouse thats going to be above 100 millions.......shame how we are going after federal while our house is full of greedy people
Ronald Miller
Reply to Dan Lee
Funny how I have not heard a single word from Holt about removing all these so called "breaks" that Higgs gave Irving, she will be doing that, correct? Thank goodness Irving was able to sell that small piece of land, their multi-billion dollar empire was going to go bankrupt if it did not go through.
Dan Lee
Reply to Ronald Miller
so you admit that Higgs was giving everything he could to theses poor billionaires?
David Amos
Reply to Matt Steele
It is amazing how far Canada has fallen in the past SEVENTY NINE years
Edward Manch
So they are completely changing the façade, doubling the size of the building, knocking out walls, and gutting a lot of the inside.
This does not really seem like "preserving" the building. It seems more like saying "Hey, we're going to preserve this one fancy staircase, give us $12 million."
David Amos
Reply to Edward Manch
Yup
It IS very expensive to upgrade and renovate these old buildings. There IS very little "Canadian" architecture.
So why spend more money to upgrade and renovate the building you are not saving much of, and instead build something new, and Canadian? It still employs lots of people, generates revenue, and contributes to the economy. It has all the positives that this project will have.
MR Cain
Good investment; maintain a heritage building, employ lots or workers, and "producing a theatre that has the capacity to build and create work, and then showcase that work for an appropriate-sized audience."
David Amos
Reply to MR Cain
Yea Right
Randy Dumont
The money could be raised privately, public taxes shouldn’t be wasted on bread and circuses projects.
David Amos
Reply to Randy Dumont
I agree
Alex Butt
Meanwhile how many Canadians are sleeping in the streets, or going without food, no or poor healthcare? Good to see the governments have their priorities right!
Graham McCormack
Reply to Alex Butt
Have they stopped working on that issue? I must have missed that announcement.
David Amos
Reply to Alex Butt
Well put
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