Cost of new Kamloops arts centre has almost doubled to $120M

Nearly four years after a vote on a proposed Kamloops arts centre was abandoned, it's officially coming back to the table at city hall.

City council is expected to consider spending $7 million on a detailed Kamloops Centre for the Arts design. If all goes to plan, it could be built by 2028, according to a staff report.

Before the COVID-19 pandemic derailed a referendum, residents were planning to decide whether the city should go into debt for the $70 million downtown venue. That cost estimate has now nearly doubled to $120 million as of 2023, according to the report.

How the new build, if eventually approved, will be funded isn't clear this time.

Councillors have suggested private sector partnerships and donations might prop up funding and alleviate weight on the taxpayer. The $7 million design work, however, would be paid for through a short-term loan, according to the report.

Aside from early concept designs, the building hasn't been fully planned. Much of the early concept work has been done by the owners of the Kelson Group, the Fawcett family.

The arts venue would take up half a downtown block, between Seymour and St. Paul streets, along 4 Avenue.

It would be an "iconic structure" and a "catalyst to transform" the surrounding downtown area, the report read.

The report first goes to the Build Kamloops council committee, which consists of five councillors. If approved at the committee stage, it will then go to city council for final approval.

Staff estimate a final estimate and design would be finished at least by early 2026, with shovels to hit the ground that spring if the funding is approved.

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