On August 27, the Honourable Filomena Tassi, Minister of Seniors and Member of Parliament (Hamilton West–Ancaster–Dundas), announced funding of $1,500,000 for the development of the Ancaster Arts Centre. Minister Tassi made this announcement on behalf of the Honourable Pablo Rodriguez, Minister of Canadian Heritage and Multiculturalism.
Designed by Hamilton’s Invizij Architects, the Ancaster Arts Centre will be located at the unused Ancaster Memorial School, recently purchased by the City of Hamilton. The site is nestled in the heart of Ancaster’s original downtown area, adjacent to historically important sites.The Ancaster Arts Centre will give the community access to a new space dedicated to the arts. The new creative hub has been designed to provide affordable space for the community’s artists to collaborate and creatively grow. The Centre will support various artistic mediums, including theatre, visual arts, dance and others.
“Cultural spaces like the Ancaster Arts Centre bring together people of all backgrounds. By supporting the renovation and construction of cultural infrastructure, we are creating good jobs for the middle class, strengthening communities and helping make arts and culture more accessible for all Canadians,” said Tassi.
Building on a $3 million provincial commitment announced in late 2017, the funding, provided by the Government of Canada through Canada Cultural Spaces Fund, will support the development of the new Ancaster Arts Centre, in the heart of Ancaster Heritage Village. The creative hub is designed to provide artists, arts organizations, cultural entrepreneurs and other members of the Hamilton community with an affordable space to collaborate and encourage creative growth. Meanwhile, a community fundraising campaign for the Centre has now also raised well over $2 million.
The Ancaster Arts Centre will include a 450-seat theatre, a smaller studio theatre, two visual arts studios, a dance studio, two rehearsal halls, an artifact vault and a multipurpose common room. The Centre will also offer professional programming in the performing arts, along with visual arts exhibitions in its gallery, to support the area’s burgeoning arts community.