Engagement, pilot projects top of mind at the Anvil Centre

There are a number of next steps coming up when it comes to the Anvil Centre, including community engagement, completing a functional review of the space, and developing new pilot programs to animate specific spaces. The discussion happened on Monday afternoon after council and staff, in June, talked about whether the Anvil Centre needed to be reimagined.

In the case of the pilot programs, they’d be centred around level one of the spaces, and would/could include:

• Adult and family-focused programs;

• Pop-up opportunities;

• Expanded passive community space;

• Corporate and community events and festivals

The discussion comes after a previous one in June where five questions were top of mind in the context of the centre’s use. As a reminder, the questions included:

• With consideration to the ways in which Anvil Centre currently offers core cultural services and conference and events services, does council envision additional ways that the facility could supplement, support and reflect the 2023-2026 New West strategic plan?

• In consideration of the changing demographics and increasing populations and density in the downtown area, would Council like staff to explore the allocation of additional, alternate or focused programming and resources for Anvil Centre?

• What reporting and communications methods would help Council and the general public better understand and appreciate the complexity and breadth of Anvil Centre operations?

• Does Council have any questions regarding the Anvil budget report from the May 8, 2023 Council meeting?

• During Council onboarding and the 2023 budget process, information was presented regarding Anvil Centre operations and budget. Are there questions that Council would like addressed or any gaps in information provided?

Some of the latest feedback on Monday afternoon included whether there needed to be a name change—which came from Coun. Daniel Fontaine. Fontaine elaborated, saying that he wasn’t referring to the “Anvil” part or the “Centre” part, but explaining what the space is by calling it something like the “Anvil Community and Arts Convention Centre.”

Per Coun. Tasha Henderson—while sharing a recent experience with her kids in which they didn’t feel compelled to talk loudly—she hoped that children and others would be able to bring their “whole selves” to the Centre.

Coun. Ruby Campbell suggested leaning on specific groups like and the City’s Parks and Recreation team to figure out a strategy for the centre’s future—she also suggested the idea of a focus using the three C’s: community, culture, and commerce.

“I’m not in a position to say how I want it presented, but it’s not equalized, that conversation…there’s got to be synergistic metrics that we can figure out, so that we can have regular comparables,” explained Coun. Campbell, who added that the space felt a bit like a formal living room that people do want to use, but they’re unsure about accessing.

“It doesn’t have the feeling the community wants from it,” says Coun. Nadine Nakagawa. “I want something closer to the library for the Anvil Centre…but I don’t necessarily think these things are in competition with each other.”

Mayor Patrick Johnstone cautioned that the group needed to make sure it could narrow down a clear definition of what the space can or can’t be. In his opinion, the space couldn’t necessarily be—as an example—a woodworking space or a gym.

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