Public rally behind Arts Centre
Arts and culture is “not a ‘nice to have’, it’s essential to who we are”.
Those were the words repeated over and over during a public rally in the Great Hall to save the Arts Centre in Christchurch yesterday evening.
Over 100 supporters filled the Great Hall and listened as people shared their memories and experiences of the Arts Centre and why it should be saved.
They were gathered in support of continued funding for the Arts Centre Trust, after the Christchurch City Council proposed to cut its funding for the first time, threatening the trust’s demise.
The council didn’t include any funding for the Arts Centre in its draft 10-year budget released last month. It had given the trust $1.83 million annually for the past three years.
Without the funding, the trust said it would be on the path to insolvency and would legally have to start winding up from July.
Yesterday’s rally turned into a celebration of nostalgic memories of the Arts Centre. From being part of and watching live performances to celebrating friends getting married, or eating the “legendary” pumpkin choc chip muffins from the Boulevard Bakehouse, local arts and cultural leaders got emotional as they shared what the centre meant to them.
The centre was more than a heritage building. It brought a diverse range of people together to engage in artistic, cultural, heritage, educational and creative experiences, one member of the public said.
Arts Centre director Philip Aldridge said it bound the community together.
If the trust became insolvent, the High Court would likely hand its assets to the council, meaning all the same costs, plus significant legal fees, would then fall to ratepayers, he said.
Some critics have said the Arts Centre could be more commercially run. But “buildings themselves do not create community”, Aldridge said. The council’s ownership would spell the end of the Arts Centre, he said.
Aldridge was joined by Lily Ping from Everyone An Artist Trust (an Arts Centre tenant), Naomi van den Broek from the University of Canterbury School of Music, Solomon Smith from Th’Orchard, Lyn Cotton from Jolt Dance, Esmail Fathi from Simurgh Music School, and Dr Erin Harrington who all shared their own experiences and thoughts on why the Arts Centre should continue as it is.
City councillor Andrei Moore wrapped up the event, speaking about his own fond memories of the centre. He said no decision would be made until the end of June, and he could not predetermine any outcome.