Council chambers erupted in applause and cheers Monday night after council approved negotiating a lease at the Hemingway Centre with the Visual Arts Studio Association of St. Albert (VASA).
Despite Mayor Nolan Crouse’s quick caution that council’s unanimous vote only meant administration could start negotiating with VASA, the entourage of artists watching the meeting from the gallery could scarcely conceal their joy over the prospect of having approximately 4,000 square feet of new space to work with.
“I’m thrilled,” said Pat Wagensveld, president of the VASA board. “I am thrilled by the unanimous approval to allow VASA to negotiate the lease to the building. It will fill our needs and we can build and facilitate programs, do outreach programs to the community.”
The negotiations are the result of a motion Crouse made last year, calling for the former RCMP building to be used as an artists’ incubator. With the exceptions of groups such as the 55-Plus Games and Special Olympics, as well as two studio spaces VASA already uses, the building has sat vacant since the RCMP moved out in 2001.
Acting city manager Chris Jardine said the city selected VASA because it was an established arts group within the city looking for more space. The St. Albert Place Visual Arts Council (SAPVAC), made up of the city’s five arts guilds, are happy with their arrangement in St. Albert Place and have no wish to move, Jardine said.
“It was who’s looking for the space, who’s been talking to us about wanting this and who’s established. And VASA was the group. So short of trying re-invent the wheel, we basically had a well-established organization that has basically been advocating for exactly what the mayor’s motion was leaning towards.”
The two key items to be negotiated will be the lease rate VASA will pay for the space, as well as the expectations the city has on what the group will provide to the community.
“We have some perspectives and expectations they will help grow the arts, do some outreach in getting people involved but also develop emerging artists,” Jardine said. “Those are some of our expectations.”
The building costs the city approximately $37,100 in operating expenses. It currently leases space to Special Olympics at a rate of $5 per sq. ft. An administrative report indicates it might be able to negotiate higher rates with VASA, but acknowledges the group has limits to what it can afford.
Even assuming the space is leased to VASA at the Special Olympics rate, once that group moves out, the city’s net costs to run the building would be reduced from approximately $33,000 to $18,000. Previous engineering reports have indicated the building will also need some upgrades in its HVAC system, as well as the roof. That will also have to be negotiated as the roof repairs alone could reach into the hundreds of thousands of dollars, Jardine said.
While the building actually measures 6,500 sq. ft., VASA will only be using 4,000 due to the city using some space as storage, as well as the fact some spaces such as former cells are not suitable for use. The motion as passed called for no new money to be invested in renovations.
Lynda Flannery, executive director of the St. Albert Taxpayers Association, spoke to council about the issue, saying administration had not explored all possible uses for the space. She suggested the city could save on rent costs by moving staffers, SAPVAC or the Arts and Heritage Foundation from St. Albert Place to the Hemingway Centre.
“We suggest that … other ideas be considered, such as relocating staff or integrating other groups along with the VASA proposal,” Flannery said.
