Regina mayor says Globe Theatre repairs a priority, but no money until feds, province weigh-in

Regina's city council has made repairs and upgrades to the Globe Theatre a priority project, but there will be no formal funding announcement until the province and federal government make a decision on how much they're chipping in.

The bill to repair aging infrastructure and make upgrades to the more-than-century-old Prince Edward Building, which houses the theatre, is estimated to cost $29 million.

"This is a critical cultural icon for our city downtown, and everyone agrees this is a priority project for us and we hope soon we'll hear something from the federal government and the province to join in in funding that new project," Mayor Michael Fougere said on Tuesday.

The organization has proposed that the City of Regina chip in $6.6 million. The theatre's proposal includes funding from the provincial and federal governments.

The Globe is also seeking$5 million from thecorporations,foundationsandindividualdonationsin the private sector. Three million has already been pledged from the private sector, the proposal states.

A spokesperson from Infrastructure Canada said the federal government will chip in some money if the province does as well.

The money would come from theInvesting in Canada Infrastructure program (ICIP) but projects, such as the Globe, have to be prioritized by the municipality and province first.

In October, the province and the feds signed an agreement worth $896 million for infrastructure projects in Sask. More than $56 million of that is reserved for "community, culture and recreation" programs.