Remai gets budget boost from city
The City of Saskatoon’s contributions to the Mendel Gallery are expected to jump almost 20 per cent to $3.66 million in 2015 as the organization transitions to being the Remai Modern Art Gallery of Saskatchewan.
The Mendel is set to close in June 2015 and the $94-million Remai Modern Art Gallery project, currently taking shape at River Landing, is scheduled to open in mid-2016.
Gregory Burke, executive director and chief executive officer of the Mendel Art Gallery and future Remai Modern Art Gallery, said a higher-than-normal amount of city funding will be needed in 2015 to support work at both galleries during a “transition year” when one centre is shutting down and operations at the other are ramping up.
However, he said the Remai will continue to seek increased funding from the city once the Mendel closes because of the high costs associated with operating a gallery as large as the Remai.
“Effectively we’re setting up an entirely new organization in the form of Remai Modern. It’s a gallery that will be five times the size of the Mendel and, in principle, if you think about that, it will cost five times as much to heat, five times as much to clean,” Burke said.
The most recent Remai business plan, presented to city council in March 2012, asked the city for $3.99 million in funding in 2015 to cover 57 per cent of the centre’s operating budget. The city’s preliminary contribution for 2015 falls $330,000 short of that request.
Burke said those involved in getting the Remai ready for its grand opening “would obviously feel more comfortable if there was more funding available” from the city in 2015, but the Remai’s ability to fundraise and partner with private businesses is “much greater” than the Mendel’s and he is confident the centre will have the funds to open on time.
The city has said the centre will open in June 2016. However, Burke said the gallery has never been that specific in its goals.
“We’ll plan to open in 2016 as soon as is realistic and practical after the building is completed,” he said.
The 2012 plan requested $4.33 million from the city in 2016 and $4.63 million from the city in 2017.
The $3.66 million proposed for the art gallery in the city’s preliminary budget is a 19.3 per cent jump from the $3.07 million it received in 2014.
An updated business plan with more info on city contributions, fundraising and other revenuegenerating plans is to be presented to city council in January.