CORNWALL, Ontario – Ontario Power Generation (OPG) made a $15,000 donation to the Cornwall Arts Centre fund on Tuesday, Jan. 5, 2021.
The donation was presented at 159 Pitt St., the former Bank of Montreal in Cornwall’s downtown. The City of Cornwall purchased that building in 2018 with plans that it become a municipally owned arts and culture centre.
The building was purchased for $450,000, with an estimated $4 million to $6 million in renovations being necessary to bring the vision of an arts centre to life.
The Arts and Culture Fund Committee has pledged to raise $1 million from the community for the project.
“The Community Fundraising Committee for the future Arts & Culture Centre of Cornwall is thankful for the support it has received from local residents, businesses and various organizations in Cornwall and Ontario during the Covid-19 pandemic. The fundraising team is further encouraged by the recent generous $15,000 donation from the Ontario Power Generation,” reads a statement from the Arts and Culture Fund Committee.
Ideas for the future arts centre include adding a black box theatre, a reception area, along with space for art exhibitions.
This brings the total amount raised by the Arts and Culture Fund Committee to $828,676.
Committee Chairperson Katie Burke said that the pandemic had made the need for art more important than ever.
“In this trying period of COVID-19, we need the Arts & Culture Centre and its programming more than ever for our mental health and well-being. The Arts of music, dance, art, theatre, literature in many forms are the essential elements that help maintain balance in our lives,” she said.
