City Puts Funding Plan in Place to Start Building PAC Next Year

Fredericton, NB, June 27, 2022 --- The City of Fredericton has announced the funding plan for the new Performing Arts Centre that will allow construction to begin as early as Fall 2023.  

Following a series of studies which found that the existing Playhouse is at the end of its life and the only feasible solution is a replacement, the City committed to borrowing up to $14M to fund the construction of the new PAC while exploring funding opportunities with other levels of government. Now, the City’s strong fiscal management and a federal/provincial infrastructure funding agreement means the dream of a new, state-of-the-art performance venue will soon be a reality. 

“The City’s smart financial leadership is something of which Council is very proud, and it’s what is allowing us to move this project forward,” said Mayor Kate Rogers. “A lot of hard work has gone into securing the balance of funding from other levels of government because a new PAC has been our top infrastructure priority for almost a decade.  We’re very grateful to both the provincial and federal governments for their invaluable assistance in achieving this milestone.” 

Funding Model 

The provincial and federal governments are providing the City with approximately $23.2M in funding through the Integrated Bilateral Agreement (an infrastructure funding agreement), which allows the City to advance its core water and sewer renewal needs while creating capacity to direct existing federal funding to the PAC.  Indeed, this investment provides the City with the financial flexibility to apply the funds we receive annually via the Canada Community-Building Fund (formerly called the Gas Tax Fund) to the PAC project. 

Government of Canada - Canada Community-Building  Fund (formerly Gas Tax Fund) offset by Fed/Prov IBA  Investment**	$23,175,000
Remaining CCBF allocation	$18,025,000
City Borrowing***	$14,000,000
Donations****	$3,000,000+
Oromocto	$100,000
TOTAL:	$58,300,000

In 2020, the City engaged the services of Diamond Schmitt Architects to design the new Performing Arts Centre.