A photo of a handout depicting a rendering of a new performing arts centre in downtown Kamloops distributed at the Jan. 8, 2019 city council meeting.

Image Credit: SUBMITTED/CHP Architects

City hall has been abuzz with anticipation for the so-called Build Kamloops initiative, chiefly looking forward to the long-planned performing arts centre.

Unlike the lead up to the abandoned referendum to fund the venue in 2020, the Kamloops Centre for the Arts Society has kept its lobbying efforts largely quiet this time, but that doesn't mean they aren't working.

Board chair Brenda Aynsley said the society's volunteers have been lobbying behind the scenes while taxpayers decide whether they're willing to fund the projects.

"We're actively talking with large corporate donors in Kamloops who are willing to bring money to the table and are excited about the opportunity for Kamloops," she said. "They know that this will attract the kind of people we need to move here. It's for young families that stay, for doctors to come, other professionals, and to really grow our Tournament Capital Centre."

She said the lobbying efforts haven't been restricted to simply funding the performing arts centre, but it's a work taken on by volunteers from both the arts and sporting communities to coax sponsors for the Build Kamloops initiative in general. They're aiming for a $40 million goal and Aynsley feels confident they'll get there.

Meanwhile, the counter petition could bring the projects to a halt.

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The City is asking taxpayers for permission to borrow $275 million for both the performing arts centre downtown and a multiplex ice rink in Dufferin.

It's not without opposition, but Aynsley said she's concerned about what information is circulating among those against the projects or undecided.

"We're pleased with the opportunity for people in the community to have ample time to voice their opposition because we think there's lots of information and misinformation out there," she said.

A campaign against the loans is at least partly organized by a social media account under the name Kamloops Anti Alternative Approval Petition Alliance, or KAAAPA.

The group started its campaign online by misquoting city councillors and insulting reporters on social media and has now been delivering petitions to people around the city. According to their social media activity, the group's concern is both for the costly burden such a loan puts on taxpayers and for the City's decision to open the matter up for a counter petition (or Alternative Approval Process) rather than a referendum.

It's far from a foreign process to Kamloops voters as they have been asked to voice their disapproval of City projects through the Alternative Approval Process more than half a dozen times since 2003. Most are not stopped by counter petitions, like the $48 million water treatment plant in 2003 and a $9 million loan for Overlander Bridge repairs in 2015.

Just one was successfully stopped, which was a $9 million two-storey parkade at Riverside Park. The Friends of Riverside group helped get 10,267 signatures in 2011, nearly double what was needed to cross the required 10 per cent of the electorate.

KAAAPA has called the counter petition process "corrupt," suggested City staff will shred petitions before they're counted and appealed to conspiracy-minded supporters connecting the proposed projects to "15-minute cities."

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Who is actually running the campaign isn't clear and they refused to respond to interview requests.

The group has now been delivering petitions to people around the city, according to social media posts.

A person named Coley Ecker was identified as someone taking donations to fund campaign efforts like gas money, while a Pat Hendricks is tasked with taking names and a tally of petitioners so they can compare to city records. That's despite claims the counter petition is undemocratic because it does not use secret ballots.

iNFOnews.ca sent multiple messages to campaign accounts requesting an interview. On Aug. 8, Hendricks said someone from the group would respond to an interview request from iNFOnews.ca within "a day or two," then stopped responding.

The counter petitions each need 8,713 signatures to block a $140 million loan for the arts centre and $135 million for the multiplex.

It's the first time Kamloops has used the Alternative Approval Process for arts or sports venues, but Kelowna had approved a $241 million loan for four new recreation facilities last year and a 2022 $28 million loan was approved for an aquatics centre in Vernon.

The estimated cost for the performing arts centre has skyrocketed since its initial conception. In 2015, the loan for the project was pegged at $49 million. That would have seen the former Kamloops Daily News building renovated, but it was instead demolished after 54 per cent of referendum voters turned it down.

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In the lead up to the 2020 referendum, the City showed off a new conceptual design and estimated the second iteration of the proposed performing arts centre to cost $70 million. That referendum was abandoned due to COVID-19. The next year the city again pointed to the venue as first on the list for new arts and recreation facilities, but its projected cost grew to $90 million.

It's not clear if anything about the project itself meaningfully changed since then, but this year the venue is estimated at around $140 million. If approved, the City will take out the loan once the facility is open rather than when construction starts.

City spokesperson Kristen Rodrigue said that doesn't necessarily mean the whole amount will be funded through property taxes. Any potential grants that come from other levels of government would reduce the debt load, but she said they are typically easier to apply for once funding is arranged and a design is finished. Both are still ongoing.

How that affects the expected tax increases is yet to be decided. As of now, the City expects the average home's property taxes to increase by $25 each year for five years to fund the $275 million debt.

Taxpayers have until Sept. 13 at 4 p.m. to submit their petitions, giving more than a month for residents to oppose the project.

Go here for our past coverage on the proposed performing arts centre.

More information about the counter petition process and the proposed projects can be found on the City website here.

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