By Natalie Johnson
The City of Ottawa is calling on the federal government to put an end to what councillors are calling the “chicken-and-the-egg” scenario delaying a decision on the future of the Elgin Street Concert Hall.
The corporate services and economic development committee passed the motion in response to the Ottawa Chamber Music Society’s appeal to postpone the already-extended Nov. 30 funding deadline to next Feb. 28.
The plan to construct the 925-seat community concert hall at 150 Elgin St. has been in the works since the group’s May 2004 partnering with the developer Morguard.
But although the society was able to convince the city and province to pledge $5.47 million and $6.5 million respectively, it has been unable to secure the federal and private money required to go ahead with the project.
The potential federal backer, the Cultural Spaces program, has held on to the application since early 2005 but has yet to respond
Government officials have told the organization that a decision on its $10-million request is unlikely to come unless it can confirm the hall’s financial viability.
Specifically, the society has been asked to demonstrate the commitment of a title sponsor.
And although it is in talks with a national financial corporation it says it can’t divulge. It says sponsors want to know federal dollars are in place before they commit.
Saying that the debate over which comes first has gone on long enough, the committee has decided to ask the Heritage department for a definitive answer – hopefully by the time council submits the issue to full discussion Nov. 28 – to determine whether it should withdraw its funding.
The motion came despite Bay Ward Coun. Alex Cullen’s protest that avoiding a vote was not fair to the participants.
“It is naïve to expect that the federal government is going to turn around and reply to one of the thousands of municipalities in this country because we have an interest in the concert hall,” he said.
But the proponents of prompting federal government’s decision before putting the issue to a vote noted the ironic alternative – that the first level of government to support the project would be the one to pull the plug.
“I would hate to see this die when there is an opportunity to talk to the government,” said River Ward Coun. Maria McRae, who proposed the motion.
The committee has instructed OCMS members to canvas the business community in the interim – to collect what will constitute the final 10 per cent of the funding if the federal grant pulls through.
If council votes to extend the deadline the public campaign will aim to raise $2 or $3 million, says OCMS president Colin Cooke.
The fundraising would augment the $1 million collected in private pledges and the additional $3.8 million promised by Morguard.
The OCMS has said efforts will be improved with the Nov. 2 appointment of Glenn Hodgins as the group’s new executive director.
Plans were set back six months after the resignation of Julian Armour, the project pioneer.
“There are three more months,” said Gloucester-Southgate Ward Coun. Diane Deans. “If there’s still hope we could make this happen, why would we end the dream of a concert hall in Ottawa?”
With files from Melanie Gauthier