Armouries Update

A team led by Webb Management Services was hired by the Windsor Symphony Orchestra and the Armouries Concert Hall Committee in September 2008 to study the feasibility of transforming the Windsor Armouries into a concert hall and regional performance venue. In December 2008, the team presented the results of the first and second rounds of work, which addressed the need for new facilities and developed preliminary physical plans and cost estimates.
 
Webb Management Services determined the need for new performance facilities through a market assessment of the Windsor-Essex region, an evaluation of potential uses and users, a review of the competitive market, and the benefits and impacts of such a facility.
 
The overall concept of converting the Windsor Armouries into a cultural venue will provide the region with a high-quality performance venue at a fraction of the cost of building a new hall. In addition, the adaptive re-use of the Windsor Armouries is fundamentally a preservation project – a way to preserve a building that is historically and culturally significant.

View PDF of the study

Long-term Goal: 
Adaptive Re-use of Armouries into a festival hall
• Central downtown Arts venue open to public use
• Preservation of Military and  Architectural Heritage
• Complements existing performing arts facilities by focusing on
   quality of sound and bridging seating capacity
• Showcase for artists in our community and

Short-term Goal:
Conduct feasibility study then create a Business Case on long-term financial sustainability of a concert hall
• Feasibility study will establish acoustical potential for the concert hall Done!
• Investigate provincial, federal and private sources of funding for the
   re-habilitation of the Armouries as a heritage property and construction of
   concert hall components
• Delay investigation of other Armouries uses until the feasibility study
   is concluded and evaluated
• Delay development of city-owned properties immediately adjoining the
   Armouries, including the old Greyhound Bus Terminal and parking lots

Creative reuse of existing structures for the revitalization of downtown areas and the promotion of arts and cultural tourism is a priority for both the Provencial and Federal government.

Why now?

• The City is interested in adaptive re-use plans for the Armouries
• As the Armouries sits idle, more repairs are going to be needed and
   maintenance costs will increase
• Downtown needs a boost now, not later
• Economic Development Commission is pushing its Creative Age
    strategy now
• The City of Windsor is branding its Quality of Life, which invariably
   includes the Arts

Funding the Feasibility Study

Municipal funding	$15,000
Essex County	$5,000
DWBIA	$10,000
WSO - private donations	$10,000
Provincial/Federal Grants	$20,000
United Communities Credit Union	$40,000
TOTAL	$100,000

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Our Present Home

The Chrysler Theatre

If you consider that the WSO’s product is orchestral sound, and the quality of this product determines audience engagement, acoustics becomes extremely important. Maestro Russell has conducted in the top concert halls in the world including the Musikverein in Vienna, Austria and Carnegie Hall in New York City. He knows concerts halls and he knows acoustics.

• Pie shaped and sloping
• Padding on walls and seats absorbs and muffles sound
• orchestra must be electronically amplified which distorts the sound
• small stage limits size of orchestra and repertoire that can be played

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Why the Windsor Armouries?
Because…
• It will bring tens of thousands more patrons to the downtown core
   every year
• It will attract high quality musicians and performers who will perform
   and/or live in Windsor and region
• It will allow thousands of children to experience classical music through
   educational concerts
• It will preserve Windsor’s military heritage
• It will be a beautiful facility used by the entire community
• It will attract new sources of entertainment revenue to the City
   of Windsor
• It will ensure WSO’s long-term financial sustainability
• It will give the City of Windsor a unique Arts venue based on excellent
   quality of sound and a mid-range seating capacity
• It will appeal to the Senior/Baby Boomer segment seeking quality
   live entertainment
• It will appeal to more families seeking child-centered performances
   and activities
• It will garner Windsor nationwide attention for forward-thinking planning
   and creative adaptive re-use of heritage property
• It will send apositive message to visitors as Windsor and Canada’s “front door”
   from USA

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The Windsor Armouries

The Windsor Armouries during one of our sold-out performances of Messiah

 

"Shoe Box" style concert halls around the world:

 

The Arsenal Concert Hall in Metz, France, was converted from a historic armouries building.

"The project of the Arsenal can be regarded as a success in that 200 performances are organized every year, frequented by a total of 120,000 people. Catalyst of all types of music, key centre for contemporary dance, melting pot of a new public, stopping-off place for the greatest artists and contemporary actors the Arsenal represents a renewal of cultural life. From the point of view of the town planning, the realization of the Arsenal allowed the whole district of the Citadel to be rehabilitated. What remains is to rehabilitate the building instated on the site : 'le Magasin aux Vivres' ('the supplies store' - 16th century). A luxury hotel project is actually under study."

Aguram, June 2001
Agence d'Urbanisme de l'Agglomeration Messine

The Windsor Armouries Concert Hall could be the catalyst to revitalise downtown Windsor!

The Snape Maltings Concert Hall in Suffolk, England, was converted from a barley maltings into a complex that includes galleries, restaurants, shops and the concert hall.

Built by Newson Garrett in the mid-19th century, the Maltings at Snape was one of the largest barley maltings in East Anglia. After 120 years the malting of barley ceased.

The first major development was the Concert Hall. This move towards visitors to the Maltings inspired retail development. The Craft Shop opened bringing together a variety of locally made art and crafts. Snape Maltings has developed a range of offerings, and revitalised the old granaries into a leading destination on the Heritage Coast.

The Gerding Theatre in Portland was converted from a historic armouries building.

The hall features:
• Energy Efficient Heating and Cooling
• Water Conservation
• Natural Ventilation
• Recycling Materials
• Converted at a cost of $36.2 million

The Windsor Armouries Concert Hall could be the Greenest Concert Hall in Canada!

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Every dollar spent on the Arts generates $5 in other economic sectors

WSO’s budget is currently $2.1 million dollars and will have an economic impact of $10.5 million dollars in the Windsor/EssexCommunity this year alone

A new Armouries concert hall, with superb acoustics and additional growth and ticket sales opportunities would result in doubling WSO’s budget within 5-7 years

A $4.2 million investment =
$21 million economic impact

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Other Revenue Streams for the Windsor Armouries Concert Hall

• Windsor Symphony Youth Orchestra performances
• University of Windsor School of Music
• Windsor Classic Chorale and WSO Chorus
• High School Performance Programs
• Windsor International Film Festival
• Professional sound recordings
• National and International Music Festivals and Competitions
• Touring groups from around the world
• Any voice-focused presentations

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“Who’s gonna pay for it?”

The Feasibility Study will identify the multiple sources of funding available for this type of project.

The scope of the Armouries Concert Hall as an adaptive re-use of a heritage property into a community-based Arts venue is multi-faceted and will appeal to a wide range of novel and quality-specific sources of funding for construction not normally accessible to the municipality ie Heritage Canada, Canada Council for the Arts, Military Foundations, Environment Canada.

Doing a feasibility study does not commit the City of Windsor to the construction of the concert hall, but it does produce a Business Case that can be used by the City, WSO, Economic Development Commission, DWBIA and other stakeholders to approach potential public/private sector partners.

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Economic Outlook

Transportation infrastructure construction scheduled to begin in the next 2-3 years will have an enormous economic domino effect on the local economy
Incoming professional and trades people will move to this area for the duration and will either choose to stay or leave based on what they see happening in our community with regards to quality of life.

There are numerous provincial and federal funding programs specifically for Heritage and Arts projects that are being tapped by other organizations. Case in point, Tafelmusik, an internationally renown baroque orchestra based in Toronto, was recently encouraged by Heritage Canada to apply for a $10 million dollar grant for the adaptive re-use of a heritage building.

Our tax dollars are being spent improving quality of life through the Arts all over Ontario. It’s time to bring some of that money back to Windsor, but it can only happen with a joint partnership with the City of Windsor.

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Recommendations

• That the Armouries Re-use Committee collaborate with the Windsor Symphony Orchestra and other community stakeholders to investigate the adaptive re-use of the Windsor Armouris into a concert hall.

• That the City of Windsor approve partial funding for the feasibility study in the amount of $60,000 from the Culture Capital Projects Budget 2007 or 2008, or from some other program.

• Should City Council approve the previous two recommendations, that neither it nor the City of Windsor, actively seek out other expressions of interest for the Armouries until the feasibility study has been completed and evaluated for further action.

• New construction for foyer, atrium, public space with military/historical display cases, box office, café at south end - First impressions count!

• Restore west door to pedestrian friendly cobblestone alleyway with electrical wires removed.

• Excavate drill hall floor to same depth as east/south side basement

• Raked wooden floor with seating for 1100

• West side balcony and rear balcony for additional 400 seats

• Large wooden stage at north end with risers or loft for chorus

• Roof needs to be replaced with insulated soundproof materials

• Steel trusses must be preserved as signature design element

• Windows need to be sound-proofed or bricked in

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You can make a difference!

Please write to your local politicians and/or to the editor of the paper and let them know what you think about this project! Your opinion about this very important project counts.

MAYOR EDDIE FRANCIS Phone: 519-255-6315	350 City Hall Square West, Windsor, N9A 6S1 Email: mayoro@city.windsor.on.ca
Ward 1 – Dave Brister Phone: 519-250-7960	847 Lounsborough, Windsor, N9G 1G3 Email: dbrister@city.windsor.on.ca
Ward 1 – Drew Dilkens Phone: 519-250-4607	3125 Massey Court, Windsor, N9E 2Z6 Email: ddilkens@city.windsor.on.ca
Ward 2 – Ron Jones Phone: 519-252-1005	390 Randolph Avenue, Windsor, N9B 2T6 Email: rjones@city.windsor.on.ca
Ward 2 – Caroline Postma Phone: 519-971-0728	841 Bruce Avenue, Windsor, N9A 4X6 Email: cpostma@city.windsor.on.ca
Ward 3 – Alan Halberstadt Phone: 519-973-8323	2517 Gail Road, Windsor, N8W 2Z7 Email: ahalberstadt@city.windsor.on.ca
Ward 3 – Fulvio Valentinis Phone: 519-977-5067	2173 Victoria Avenue, Windsor, N8X 1P8 Email: fvalentinis@city.windsor.on.ca
Ward 4 – Ken Lewenza Jr. Phone: 519-948-9328	1741 Tourangeau Road, Windsor, N8Y 4J9 Email: klewenza@city.windsor.on.ca
Ward 4 – Bill Marra Phone: 519-948-0900	2475 Buckingham Drive, Windsor, N8T 2B4 Email: bmarra@city.windsor.on.ca
Ward 5 – Jo-Anne Gignac Phone: 519-945-4434	246 St. Rose Avenue, Windsor, N8S 1X2 Email: joagignac@city.windsor.on.ca
Ward 5 – Percy Hatfield Phone: 519-739-9575	3025 Claxton Court, Windsor, N8R 1P9 Email: phatfield@city.windsor.on.ca

Call 311 to verify your Ward representation.

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