Federal Goverment Pledges $2.5 million to Burlington's Performing Arts Centre

In a press conference held Friday afternoon at 2:30pm, Federal Minister of Canadian Hertitage and the Status of Women Beverley Oda announced that the Burlington Performing Arts Centre would received $2.5 million dollars in federal funding.

This falls a little short of the $4 million the City of Burlington was hoping to receive. However, Mayor Cam Jackson and MP Mike Wallace are still optimstic about future funding from the provincial government as well as local supporters.

The Performing Arts Centre is designed for shows presented by local arts groups, as well as performers from across Canada and around the world. The Centre is located in the heart of Burlington’s downtown at the corner of Locust and Elgin, just behind City Hall, and a stone’s throw from Spencer Smith Park on the lake.

Conceptual design for the building has been completed and City Staff are in the process of selecting a detailed design architect, who will base the final building plans on the existing concepts. The building will contain two theatres: the Main Stage Theatre, with its full fly tower, is expected to have about 718 seats, and the multi-purpose Studio Theatre will seat about 250 on fully-retractable seats. With these two options, there are endless possibilities for the kinds of performances we will be able to see at this theatre.

The Campaign for the Burlington Performing Arts Centre, co-chaired by Keith Strong and Gary DeGroote, has seen great success to date. The Fundraising Cabinet is fast approaching the $10 million mark, with well over $9 million in funding already collected.

For more information, and to donate to the Campaign for the Burlington Performing Arts Centre, please contact Sandra Baker, City of Burlington, at 905-335-7600, extension 7484, or by e-mail at bakers@burlington.ca

Burlington Downtown Dining

Burlington Downtown Dining 2007 – a tasty tour showcasing the delights of 19 downtown restaurants – took place on Sunday July 8th, 2007.

For the first time ever Downtown Dining was comprised of four tours, each consisting of five participating restaurants, with Tours 1-3 selling out in a record breaking 48 hours. The tours ran from 11:15 a.m. to 3:00 pm, with twenty groups of 32 guests spending the afternoon strolling the streets of Burlington’s downtown and indulging in food, wine and beer provided by 2020 Lakeside, 5050 Tandoor and Grill, Di Mario's Trattoria, Emma's Back Porch / The Water Street Cooker, Ivanka's Downtown Bistro, Kaareli's Restaurant and Wine Bar, La Costa Nuova, Le Chef Complet, My-Thai By The Lake, Paradiso Restaurant, Pepperwood Bistro, Siam Dish, Sonzi, The Grinning Gourmand, The Landmark Steakhouse, The Martini House, The Poacher, The Queen's Head and The Sugar Bar.

The $27,000 raised was donated to Performing Arts Burlington (PAB), a not-for-profit organization created to promote and develop local performing arts. Proceeds will be used to support PAB’s arts development program, a series of workshops and seminars aimed at helping local performers and performing groups expand their resources and skills.

Next year’s tickets will go on sale May 5th 2008 at http://www.performingartsburlington.com/ or by calling 905-631-6666.