The new art gallery has challenges in front of it, but officials say they’re confident the facility will be fully open in 2027.<\/p>\n
THUNDER BAY \u2014 \u201cFundamentally, what you see is proof of concept in our success thus far. That’s no joke.\u201d<\/p>\n
That’s what Matthew Hills, the executive director of the Thunder Bay Art Gallery, told Newswatch on Wednesday after taking local media on a tour of the partially-completed space on the city’s north-side waterfront.<\/p>\n
\u201cI understand this gallery, my gallery,” he said.\u00a0“I’m executive director of the organization that we’ve taken on significant risk in this project.”<\/p>\n
“We’ve assumed that (risk),\u00a0to some degree, for the city, on behalf of this community. We know that there’s a risk there, but there’s also a proof of concept and a proof of success that helps us reach this phase.\u201d<\/p>\n
The gallery initially was supposed to open in 2025, then it was delayed<\/a>\u00a0until\u00a02026. Hills said inflationary pressures, supply-chain issues and the trade war have pushed<\/a> the cost of the project up to $74.7 million.<\/p>\n \u201cWe know building in our community can have an impact of 20 to 50 per cent in terms of material supply and access to trades,” he said. “So these are some of the challenges, but we also look at unprecedented circumstances in terms of tariff wars, in terms of the cost of sourcing material, which is a testament to the good work of the talented team we have around the table.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cWe’ve made changes. We’ve sourced, found different material supplies that make sure we’re remaining rigorous and cost-efficient with the public money and public support that we have secured so far, but that is an ongoing process.\u201d<\/p>\n