Province confirms share of Keystone funds

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This article was published 31/03/2023 (948 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

A new grant from the province to the Keystone Centre will see improvements made to its main arena over the next three years. Not only are those upgrades expected to improve the Brandon Wheat Kings game-watching experience, but they should help the centre host other large events.

Premier Heather Stefanson announced the grant money — and a multi-year, multimillion-dollar funding deal — during a stop Thursday at the Royal Manitoba Winter Fair.

“The Keystone Centre is a key contributor to the social, recreational, cultural and agricultural fabric of this region, and of course our great province,” Stefanson said.

The province will give the Keystone Centre up to $7.9 million in operating and capital funding over the next five years, plus a $3-million grant through the Arts, Culture and Sport in Community fund for upgrades to the main arena.

“These investments worth nearly $11 million will help ensure the Keystone Centre can continue to attract world-class events and provide ongoing cultural, recreational and economic opportunities for the City of Brandon, and of course for the surrounding regions,” Stefanson said.

The funding was welcomed by Mayor Jeff Fawcett, who noted the seats in the main arena are second-hand from the old Winnipeg Arena that was demolished in March 2006 as he emphasized the need for upgrades.

“These enhancements are really important,” Fawcett said. “They’re important to our region, They’re important for all kinds of events. And I’m really, really grateful to the province for working with us on this.”

Appropriately, the press conference was held in the viewing lounge overlooking the centre’s main arena, which is usually the ice surface where the Wheat Kings play but is currently the venue for show-jumping events at the fair.

Both pots of provincial money match investments in the centre being made by the City of Brandon, the city having approved its $8-million share of the capital and operating funding during its March 20 council meeting. That brings the total operating and capital funding to $15.9 million over five years, and the total for the upgrades investment to $6 million.

Coun. Bruce Luebke (Ward 6), who is also the Keystone Centre board chairperson, said the investment by the city and province shows how important the centre is as an economic driver.

The main arena improvements made with the Arts, Culture and Sport in Community funding will be made during the next three years, Luebke said, while the multi-year funding agreement allows the centre to make long-term plans.

Prior to this deal, the centre had been without a long-term funding arrangement since 2018-19, leaving it to secure funding on a year-to-year basis.

The centre is currently working on a five-year capital plan, Luebke said, so he couldn’t provide specifics regarding how the $15.9 million will be spent, but he expects priorities will be considered in the coming weeks.

Luebke acknowledged that the city still needs to come up with $400,000 for each of the last four years of the funding deal but has suggested the shortfall may come from accommodation tax money or the city’s operating budget.

Keystone Centre CEO and general manager Jeff Schumacher said the Arts, Culture and Sport in Community money for arena improvements couldn’t be more timely. He and Luebke pointed to numerous upgrades needed for the arena, including seat replacement, air conditioning, dehumidification as it isn’t up to Western Hockey League standards, and washroom renovations.

“Our list is so huge, we’ll have it spent in a day,” Schumacher said in an interview following the announcement.

The air conditioning is a significant problem, he said, as large-scale events that draw big crowds can be uncomfortably hot, depending on the weather.

Schumacher also said some of the long-term funding will allow the centre to pursue projects intended to increase its revenues and provide a financial cushion as it secures other grants.

» ihitchen@brandonsun.com