Keystone Centre board must build on success

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 07/03/2019 (2649 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

From the very beginning, the Keystone Centre’s financing and finances were the subject of missteps, public griping, political bickering and controversy.

In April 1973, the then-new facility opened to much pomp and circumstance, following a decade-long effort to build it. While it has, over time, become the multi-purpose facility it was hoped to be, it is not the facility that was initially envisioned by the organizations that were instrumental in seeing it through to fruition.

“The Keystone Centre which opens April 2 is the outcome of one of the hardest-fought civic elections in Brandon,” wrote Sun staff writer Andy Moir on March 31, 1973, “the creator of some bitterness between rural areas and the city, and the cause of 10 years of heartache for many who saw Brandon’s former arena facilities deteriorating.”

Once the city and the ad hoc Keystone Centre committee had given legs to the idea of a multi-use facility in Brandon, as per Moir’s column that day, it did not take long for the proposed 5,000-seat facility to become a political football.

“In September of 1969, it was learned the province would fork out $1.5 million towards construction of the centre,” Moir wrote. “The estimated cost of the structure was set at $4.5 million. Of the government grant, $1 million was provincial funds, the remaining $500,000 was from federal money made available through the Manitoba Centennial Corporation.”

Construction ultimately began on Nov. 12, 1970, with a sod-turning ceremony attended by hundreds of kids, and a host of politicians from every level of government. At the time, the Keystone was planned to included an Olympic-size swimming pool, indoor tennis courts, an archery range, a roller skating rink, a shooting gallery and other facilities — even a dance floor “for teenagers.”

But a year later, right in the middle of a municipal election, the Keystone was in serious financial trouble — a situation that ultimately became the main election topic.

“During the first year, Keystone had already suffered labour troubles, and by October 1971, construction had ground to a halt when the project literally ran out of money,” Moir wrote. Following the election, and the re-election of then-mayor Bill Wilton, who campaigned on a promise of a pared-down Keystone Centre at half the cost, the new council decided instead to come out in support of a complete Keystone Centre plan. Ultimately, some haggling with the province still cut much of the ostentatious ideas from the plans — all the other stuff could be added later, when money became available. The ultimate price tag hit $4,738,000, of which $200,000 went to pay down debts incurred by the Provincial Exhibition.

But even before the doors swung open on the facility, there were concerns over the Keystone’s operating deficit, which was — at that point — split equally by the city and the province.

Why bring this up now? For decades, government money has been required to keep the Keystone Centre operational. Though a renewed funding agreement hammered out between the city and the former NDP government allowed the facility to gain a better financial footing, the necessary repairs to the aging facility — and the fact that it could not pay for them on its own — showed that it was not on stable financial ground.

On Monday, Manitoba Premier Brian Pallister shared a wide smile with local councillors, Brandon Mayor Rick Chrest, the Brandon East and Brandon West MLAs, and Brandon-Souris MP Larry Maguire and other dignitaries as he announced a $2.9-million investment into the Keystone Centre — one that would allow the facility to be free of all its current debt, including its outstanding mortgage. It was announced with the quiet unveiling of the Progressive Conservative Party’s likely new campaign slogan, “Getting the job done.”

The City of Brandon, too, has committed funding to the centre this year. In its 2019 budget, council put forward $875,000 toward operational and capital expenses for the facility.

It’s now 46 years later, and government cash is still bankrolling our well-used and much-loved Keystone Centre.

As we said earlier this week, the Keystone Centre is the one facility that truly puts Brandon on the map. Other communities our size would love to have such a jewel in their midst. But a rather large amount of money is necessary to maintain that jewel, and to date the Keystone Centre has not shown itself able to sustain its operations on its own. Perhaps it will always remain a necessary service at the public’s expense. While the board has certainly been more successful of late in attracting new musical acts and entertainment, there is more that can still be done.

Our hope is that this provincial grant — as wonderful and welcome as it is — will not lull the Keystone Centre board of directors, or the public, into a false sense of financial security. We believe that the board must still find innovative ways to generate new revenue, as a means to help sustain the Keystone’s operations.

Can we get that job done, too?