Society running Towne Theatre seeks local government support

Sep 10, 2023 | 12:00 PM

The Okanagan Screen Arts Society is looking for a helping hand from local government to secure the future of the Towne Theatre.

The society is seeking an operating grant from the Regional District of North Okanagan so it can access funding sources from senior levels of government.

The non-profit society took over operation of the theatre from a private owner in 2020, saving it from permanent closure during the Covid pandemic. The 350-seat downtown venue dates back to 1929 when it opened as a dance hall and then became a cinema in 1938.

Since the change-over, the society says the theatre has seen significant upgrades and revitalized programming which includes cinema, live music, live comedy, book signings,special events, festivals, and a gathering space for local organizations.

Scott John, managing director of the society, told Vernon Matters the theatre currently receives no operating funding from any level of government, and operations are funded through ticket sales, corporate advertising, private donations, and “one-off” small project grants.

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“Without including public funding, the venue has been 90 per cent self-sufficient just through private revenue. While this is remarkable in terms of an arts and culture facility, it still leaves a $60,000 gap in funding per year,” John said in a presentation to the Greater Vernon Advisory Committee Sept. 6.

John went on to say, over the next year, the theatre needs to source regular operating funding to remain viable.

“A significant challenge exists that a number of key operating grants from senior levels of government require an existing operating grant from a local municipal or regional body as a basic eligibility criteria,” he explained.

The theatre received two large capital improvement grants from the province totalling $146,900.

“These are restricted funds for specific improvements and require matching funds from the society to access,” John said.

Planned 2024 capital improvements involve renovating the auditorium space and purchasing equipment to add to the capacity for larger live events.

The society has requested operating grant funding in the amount of $5,000 to $15,000 from the RDNO, or its member jurisdictions, for one to three years.

“This will effectively not change the overall contribution from the regional authorities, but simply designate it as an operating grant instead of project grants to meet eligibility requirements from senior levels of government,” John said.

With the Greater Vernon Cultural Centre still in the plans on a site just a block away from the Towne Theatre, John said the society could provide the multi-use performance venue that has been part of the design for the cultural centre which has yet to start construction.

“We proposed that if there are cost pressures going on with that project that are causing issues or delays, we are here and available to provide the same outcomes as were asked for and identified in their cultural plan at a very small fraction of the cost; maybe 1 per cent of the current Cultural Centre budget,” John told Vernon Matters.

He added that funding would be used for equipment purchases that local government would be making anyways to outfit the new performance venue.

“If they no longer needed to invest in the new performance portion of the project, it could free up some of the cost pressures in relation to the art gallery and museum/archives portions of it,” John added.

In a Greater Vernon cultural plan survey in 2016, the Towne Theatre was chosen as the third most frequented cultural facility in the region at 8 per cent, behind the Vernon and District Performing Arts Centre (#1- 30 per cent)) and the Okanagan Regional Library (2 – 9 per cent).

Vernon Matters has reached out to the leadership of the Greater Vernon Advisory Committee for comment on this story, but had not heard back at the time of publication.

The normal policy of the committee is to discuss requests of delegations at the next meeting, which in this case, would be in early October.

by Pete McIntyre

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