Canoe museum deserves council’s full $4M support

City council’s recommendation not to give the Canadian Canoe Museum the entire $4 million it asked for was not a complete surprise.

But it is the wrong call.

On Monday night council voted 7-4 to contribute $2 million to the new $65-million museum building. The money would be paid over four years starting in 2019, when construction is scheduled to begin.

A staff report had recommended $1 million a year for four years, matching the museum’s request. The money has been built into the city’s spending plan.

One councillor noted $4 million is a lot of money and $2 million still represents strong support for the project.

Another said people he hears from are more interested in maintaining roads and sidewalks than in a new museum.

But most people don’t know exactly how the city spends their money. Councillors do and part of their role is to provide context.

The 2018 budget includes $14 million to widen and rebuild streets and add new sidewalks. Another $2 million goes to maintenance. Those are pretty standard annual amounts.

The canoe museum building should be good for at least 50 years. Over that period $800 million will be spent upgrading and maintaining streets and sidewalks.

Two councillors worried that a larger museum will run deficits and look to the city for help. Best to have that other $2 million available for bailouts, the thinking goes.

In the early years that was a legitimate concern, one we voiced on several occasions. There were times when the museum was in rough water and seemed headed for the rocks.

Now the museum has celebrated its 20th anniversary and the way forward is smooth. A spectacular new building on a waterfront location next to the Lift Lock is part of a natural progression.

Museum officials are rightly optimistic about fundraising efforts. The province has committed $9 million. The federal government provided nearly $2 million upfront and is considering up to $15 million in capital funding.

City council’s refusal to contribute its expected share is shortsighted. It will make for a harder sell to Ottawa and undercut a national fundraising campaign.

Peterborough has an important place in the history and heritage of the canoe. Indigenous people fashioned them here for centuries and local manufacturers once dominated the world market with designs that are still produced and revered.

That’s in large part why the world’s finest canoe collection ended up here.

The competition to select a design for the new Canadian Canoe Museum has already brought national and international attention to Peterborough. Once built it will be the city’s highest-profile attraction.

In 10 days council will have an opportunity to reverse itself and provide full support. That would be the right decision.