BONNYVILLE – Clayton Bellamy, founder of the Clayton Bellamy Foundation, said he is optimistic the organization will get the Strathcona Performing Arts Centre open, despite the MD of Bonnyville not agreeing to sign on as a loan guarantor.
“We are in no way disheartened or dissuaded by the decision. I understand where they are at, and they have a budget to adhere to. It’s a really good thing that I am stubbornly optimistic about everything,” said Bellamy.
The Clayton Bellamy Foundation had previously presented a request to council to be its loan guarantor for $850,000, with the other $300,000 being guaranteed by Northern Lights School Division (NLSD).
MD council was divided on whether they are the ones who should act as guarantor on the loan, with a 4 -3 vote on a motion to accept the request as information.
“We will continue to work with them to find a solution for this, as well as with the Town of Bonnyville and City of Cold Lake. MLA Scott Cyr and Minister [Tanya] Fir have been amazing with their support of this project,” said Bellamy.
He explained the group will find out about their CFEP grant by the end of the month, which will give them more clarity on how to move forward.
During the Jan. 14 MD of Bonnyville council meeting, Susan Walker, general manager of corporate services, presented to council with administration's suggestions for the request, and explained it would be considered an unsecure loan, as the foundation does not own assets equivalent to the amount of the requested loan guarantee.
Administration’s concerns included the fact that the theatre is not within the MD, that there is “no proven track record of success with this endeavour.” It would reduce the MD’s borrowing capacity, financing details have not been confirmed with the Lakeland Credit Union, and the foundation has not yet secured the CFEP grant.
“If we need a proven track record for everything, nothing new would get built,” said Bellamy.
He feels individual track records should speak for themselves and spoke about the success and impact of his board of directors, including board vice president Lise Fielding.
“[Lise Fielding] is a very well-known person in the community, with her work at the radio station. She’s been the manager here for nearly 20 years - with three radio stations - she does all the advertising. She’s a member of the board of directors for the Chamber of Commerce. She’s been on the Canada day committee for nearly a decade. She’s been steeped in the community,” said Bellamy.
He also spoke about board member Brent Mattice, a long-time business owner in the town who has contributed to many events.
“This whole process has been like riding a turtle. We’ve been slowly and consistently knocking over one obstacle after another, and that builds that track record that they are talking about, that’s what we’re here to show the community and the MD. We’ve been at this for five years. I haven't gone away, and neither have the people on our board,” said Bellamy.
He also feels that although the theatre will be built within the Town of Bonnyville, it will have a direct impact on the MD’s constituents.
Bellamy expressed his gratitude for the support the MD has offered them and looks forward to finding a solution. The project is $1.9 million in, and Bellamy said it needs to be brought across the finish line so it can “finish and flourish.”
“We are by no means stalled. The theatre will get finished, it will be opened, and we will be bringing what we promised to the community. We’re going to go back at the next council meeting and keep this moving down the field,” said Bellamy.
He said that three shows have already been booked, and tickets are on sale. For those who want to help support the project, they can purchase a ticket.
“Having sold out shows will help the theater,” said Bellamy. “And I think it’s fitting that our first show is going to be a local boy, Mike Plume.”
The theatre also has a “Lakeland Live” open mic event planned.
MD discussion
The MD has shown its support for the theatre in the past and has previously donated a total of $180,250 to help the project.
Coun. Dana Swigart spoke about his support for the project and asked if anyone at the MD had reached out to the school division to discuss the loan, as he said the MD does not have any more information since receiving the request.
“We have lots of recreation in the area. There's lots of hockey, there’s lots of thing's sports-wise for kids. There's nothing for fine arts. So, I'm still in favour of trying to proceed with something like this,” said Swigart.
Coun. Josh Crick said he felt more responsibility should be put on the school division.
“[I]t's in the school and it's in the town, so it would be more appropriate for the school division to guarantee that since they own the building,” said Crick.
Coun. Mike Krywiak agreed that the loan should be guaranteed by Northern Lights.
Reeve Barry Kalinski inquired into what would happen if the MD refused to be the loan guarantor, and Walker suggested they might continue negotiations with the Town of Bonnyville, the school division, or seek other sponsorship.
