City of Vernon parking lot on 31st Avenue where the proposed Greater Vernon Cultural Centre would be built starting possibly in September 2025. (File photo/Vernon Matters Staff)

By Pete McIntyre

Impact of cultural centre

Mayor says city is actively pursuing new parking sites in Vernon’s downtown

Dec 5, 2023 | 2:00 PM

With construction on the proposed Greater Vernon Cultural Centre possibly starting in less than two years, some residents are concerned about the impact that will have on public parking in the downtown area.

The $41.9 million new home for an art gallery and museum would be built on part of the current City of Vernon-owned parking lot across from Eatology on 31st Avenue. That parking lot currently provides 90 spaces for vehicles.

Mayor Victor Cumming is aware of the concerns about a loss of parking, but said plans to address that are underway.

“There are 90 sites where it is right now and there will be 20 left when we build this,” Cumming told Vernon Matters at a recent open house for to unveil the centre’s designs.

“This will cover the south half of the lot. And the city is actively pursing other sites to recover the 70 parking spaces in that general area, and that’s very active.”

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Cumming said the primary users of those 90 sites are people who work in the downtown core.

Concept design of Greater Vernon Cultural Centre (RDNO image)

Cumming is confident the remaining $13.9 million needed for the cultural centre can be raised prior to the scheduled start of construction in September 2025.

He said some of that could come from senior government grants, even though those have been applied for previously without success.

“You can’t really apply effectively for those until you have this [designs and cost estimate]. Now we have a design, now we have a costing,” the mayor said.

“A decision will be made by GVAC [Greater Vernon Advisory Committee] on how quickly we move on full design, but I wouldn’t be surprised if that’s something that gets attention quite quickly, and then you start applying. That’s what we’ve learned.”

Cumming said the detailed designs give the provincial and federal governments a better idea of what they will be investing in.

Other funding sources for the $13.9 million are projected to come from foundation contributions and community donations.

Borrowing of $28 million for the project was given assent from Greater Vernon residents in an alternative approval process by the regional district in 2022, up from the previous $25 million approved in a Greater Vernon referendum in the fall of 2018.

If work on the centre started in the fall of 2025, the projected completion would be in July 2027.

RELATED: Public gets first look at Greater Vernon Cultural Centre designs