After the City of Edmonton committed $13 million towards the $53 million funding goal, the Winspear Centre Completion Project appears to hinge on the support of the remaining two levels of government, with officials from the 1997-built performing arts venue now seeking provincial cash. The plan would see the province and federal government kick in an additional $13 million each, with the remaining money to be fundraised from the public.

The new building as imagined, image via Architecture | Tkalcic Bengert

Winspear officials are hopeful that the provincial share of the pie will be included in the 2017 budget, which is set to be tabled on March 16. Rather than calling it an expansion project, the development is being marketed as a completion project that would accomplish the original vision for the site. It would occupy the L-shaped site on the west side of 97 Street between 102 and 102A Avenues where a surface parking lot is currently located. 

The parking lot to be developed, image retrieved from Google Street View

Architecture | Tkalcic Bengert, acquired late last year by Stantec, was tasked with developing a design to transform the inhospitable property into a new mixed-use building with a 540-seat multi-use acoustic hall, a childcare centre, studio space, flexible education and programming space, and improved support space for all users of the facility. The project aims to provide the capacity for increasing education, outreach, and partnership opportunities with like-minded organizations and business partners, including the Tommy Banks Institute for Musical Creativity, which would utilize the new building for community programming.

Another angle of the proposed building, image via Architecture | Tkalcic Bengert

The Winspear Centre sees the project as a way to unite the revitalization efforts taking place in the downtown core and the Quarters. The home of the Edmonton Symphony Orchestra sits in the heart of the Downtown Arts District and is named after Dr. Francis G. Winspear, who contributed six million dollars to the facility's construction, and consequently registered the single largest private donation to a performing arts venue in Canadian history. The federal and provincial governments each gave $15 million towards the facility's development.

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