The $250,000 grant application for the Other Guise Theatre Society has been blocked by Victoria’s city council due to a tied vote.
The money was to be used to aid the Society in opening a new theatre space located at 716 Johnson Street, but due to some complications that came up, the motion to get them the funds was defeated.
In 2023, the City provided $100,000 to the Other Guise Theatre Society to go towards the acquisition of 716 Johnson Street.
Following this, on January 10th, 2023, the Society purchased the property for $2,394,000 and two mortgages were registered against the property.
Based on the Society’s December 2023 financial statement, $1,927,283 remained outstanding on the two mortgages.
City council opted for the second of five options, which would see the City take out a mortgage on the property and provide a forgivable 10-year loan to the Society, where every year they were successful in their efforts at being an arts hub, 10% of their debt would be forgiven.
“Many of us want to invest in downtown. We want to invest in things that are going to bring people downtown, develop downtown, get customers downtown. We want to invest in arts and culture as per our city policies and as per this huge demand,” said Councillor Matt Dell.
“But, we want to make sure that the money we are giving out is being used for good purposes and it’s safe and secure.”
Dell stated that registering a mortgage was the safest option available to council for providing this funding.
“We would have the highest degree of certainty that if things don’t work out, which there is a small risk they won’t, we would be entitled to get our funding back,” he continued.
However, one major reason why the motion to allow the grant to go to the Society was that according to City policies, grant funding cannot go towards debt repayment.
Because of the financial situation the Society found themselves in, city council determined that there was too much risk of the Society failing in opening this space.
“I feel like the make or break is on us for this to go forward and there’s been a lot of advocacy from the arts community to make this happen,” said Councillor Krista Loughton.
“One thing that really concerns me is that there’s no real indication on how the renovations are going to be paid for and that’s as expensive as the building itself.”
City staff estimated that the estimated cost the Society would have to pay for renovations are between $1.5 million and $2 million.
“This grant doesn’t align with theCity’s overarching grant policy. Staff have also noted in the report that ‘another challenge with this application is the nature of the debt repayment to other investors to acquire a commercial building,’” said Loughton.
“The City’s grant policy stipulates that land purchase and land improvements, deficit or debt repayment are not eligible.”
After much debate, the motion to allow the grant to go to Other Guise Theatre Society through a mortgage and forgivable loan was defeated in a three-to-three tied vote.
Councillors Loughton, Stephen Hammond and Marg Gardiner voted against the motion.
Not present at the debate and decision were Mayor Marianne Alto, Councillor Chris Coleman and Councillor Susan Kim.
Kim recused herself from the session due to a conflict of interest.
Other Guise Theatre Society’s response to denial
The Other Guise Theatre Society says they will now be looking at other options as they determine the best path forward to achieving their funding goals.
“It’s not surprising. We are incredibly disappointed for the grant to be turned down after months of work,” says Matthew Payne, Executive Director, the Other Guise Theatre Society.
“We will be talking to our investor in the coming days about next steps and what the timeline might look like. We thank city staff for all their work on our request.”
Going forward, the Society will be ramping up outreach to the public to seek support in the private sector for a permanent home in downtown Victoria for the performing arts hub they envisioned.
“We know we have an economic generator waiting to happen in an area of the city that desperately needs it. So, while today’s outcome is disappointing, we’re not giving up. The level of support from multiple sectors has not gone unnoticed,” said Payne.
“We have had some inquiries regarding supporting this initiative – the time to take action is now. We still have a window to make this project a success, but it is starting to close.”
Their vision for the space is one where work could be developed and performed, emerging artists could work alongside professionals and small and medium size productions could be presented year-round.
Additionally, they want to create a space for educational drama camps, workshops and other opportunities for everyone to engage in the performing arts.
The Other Guise Theatre Society has been producing and putting on shows on Vancouver Island since 2000.
To donate to The Other Guise Theatre society, visit their website.
