The City of Fredericton has announced the location for its new Performing Arts Centre (PAC).
In a news release Monday, Fredericton City Council confirmed the centre will be located at the corner of King Street and Regent Street in the city's downtown core.
The PAC will be next to the site of the new provincial justice building, which is currently under construction on King Street.
"Choosing a location is a key step that leads to several other phases including detailed design and getting us closer to shovels in the ground,” said Fredericton Mayor Kate Rogers in the release.
Rogers adds that the PAC has been city council’s top infrastructure priority for several years now.
The city says locating the new PAC on the current Fredericton Playhouse site would have meant shutting down operations for three years, and dealing with a severe economic blow, not only to the region's art community, but equally to the downtown hospitality and retail businesses.
The King Street location is also supported by the board of the Fredericton Playhouse.
“The corner of King and Regent streets in the heart of downtown Fredericton is an ideal location for the new venue,” said Tim Yerxa, the executive director of the Fredericton Playhouse Inc.
“The PAC will be walking distance to other cultural institutions, the Historic Garrison District, restaurants, retail and hotels – all of which will benefit from the activity that will be happening in this exciting new space.”
Last year, the city purchased the parcel of land at the corner of King and Regent streets from Commercial Properties Limited and divided the property into three smaller lots for the justice building, the PAC and a parcel fronting on Brunswick Street that would be the site of a mix of high-density commercial and residential uses.
"Commercial Properties Limited is excited to see this project moving forward. It will add greatly to the vibrancy of downtown Fredericton and create a variety of important cultural opportunities for both residents and visitors," said Paul Moore, the executive vice-president with Commercial Properties Limited.
The new 71,000 square-foot centre is poised to have two theatres -- an 850-seat multipurpose theatre and a 300-seat flexible theatre.
In 2019, the cost estimate of the new centre was just over $45 million.
In June of this year, inflation has increased construction costs by eight per cent, and while there’s no change to the scope of the design, it’s now estimated to cost $58.3 million.
