Mayor tells VAG to play by the rules with new design
City officials say gallery’s preferred concept uses more space than agreed upon
Vancouver Mayor Gregor Robertson has told the Vancouver Art Gallery it has to stop developing plans for a new gallery that exceeds the generous space city council had given it.
He has also rejected the VAG’s request to assume ownership of the city’s vast art collection, reinforcing that it has to continue to be held in trust for the citizens of Vancouver.
As a result, the VAG and its architectural firm, Herzog & de Meuron, have had to redraw a conceptual design that they had hoped to unveil in late May for a fundraising campaign.
The mayor’s directive, contained in a letter written March 10, came after the VAG asked for an extension to a twoyear timeline the city gave it to raise funds for the proposed $350-million new home.
But city officials who have seen the VAG’s concept for the site said the gallery produced at least two designs, one that met city objectives and another — a preferred option that vastly exceeded those objectives, including using land the city had not agreed to provide. The scale of development on that option also intruded into the city’s protected view corridors of the mountain skyline.
Two years ago, the city gave the VAG a tentative 99-year lease on 0.7 hectares, or twothirds, of Larwill Park at 688 Cambie St., providing it could raise $100 million from the federal government, an additional $50 million from the provincial government (which had already provided $50 million) and meet other commitments by the end of April 2015.
The VAG would also be responsible for raising $150 million from private sources.
It told the VAG that the city needed to retain the remaining one-third of the site to pay off a $50-million-plus encumbrance it put on Larwill Park years ago to pay for pre-Olympic improvements to the Queen Elizabeth Theatre. That encumbrance, which is growing at the rate of five per cent a year, is now approaching $60 million.
But since then the VAG has made little progress on meeting the city’s demands. In late March, VAG director Kathleen Bartels told The Vancouver Sun that the gallery never expected to meet the city’s deadline and that it had also not applied for federal and provincial funding. She said the VAG intended to unveil the concept design in late May as the kickoff to a major fundraising campaign. She declined to show the design to The Sun.
The federal and provincial governments have said they aren’t willing to contribute more to the plan. Ottawa called it too expensive and the province, which had already contributed $50 million years ago, said it would not provide more.
Meanwhile, the VAG has focused on hiring an architectural firm to create a concept it believes will help its fundraising efforts. Projects done by Herzog & de Meuron have included London’s Tate Modern gallery and the Bird’s Nest stadium in Beijing. Last week the VAG opened a show for the firm, although the planned concepts were not revealed.
In his letter, a copy of which was provided to The Sun, Robertson said he remains strongly supportive of the gallery’s proposed move and is aware the looming federal election is important to the VAG’s fundraising objectives. But he made it clear the VAG has to operate within city council’s rules and address three issues “to demonstrate strong alignment with the direction of council.”
Those issues include designing the new VAG to fit within the area offered by the city, amending the VAG’s governance structure to align with city expectations, and consulting with the city on plans before any public launch. He said there is also an “ongoing need” for the VAG to improve relations with other members of the cultural community to build support for the project.
The mayor’s office said Robertson would not comment on the letter.
Bartels declined a request for an interview. But in response to an email asking for details of the full-site design, she insisted the VAG is working closely with the city.
“The gallery remains committed to this monumental civic project and the tremendous opportunities it presents for Vancouver. At this time, the process surrounding the various design concepts that are being considered remains confidential,” she wrote. “I trust you understand that we are not in a position to speak about these matters at this stage. We continue to work through all aspects of the project with our partners at the City of Vancouver and it is our plan to release a conceptual design and to make a significant fundraising announcement in June.”
City officials said they believe the new design to be unveiled in June will comply with the city’s demands.
Coun. Elizabeth Ball, a member of the minority Non-Partisan Association caucus, said she has seen some of the VAG’s early concepts. She did not object to the VAG trying to claim the entire Larwill Park site if it could come up with a design that would repay the city’s encumbrance.
“I have seen various permutations and combinations. I have not seen the final one,” Ball said. “The city needs to relieve themselves of that encumbrance. What if the art gallery could do that? It doesn’t have to be another developer.”
Ball, who has had experience in fundraising for public art projects, said she is confident the VAG will achieve its goals. She said she always believed the city’s two-year deadline was unreasonable and that such projects need time to build momentum among public funders and private donors.
“I am absolutely confident that the Vancouver Art Gallery will be successful in getting this project done,” she said. “They just need time and support.”