I was about to head out but tuned in just in time to hear Clr Rashovich saying he was going to support the $1.4mil for the Globe & was like, "No more debate needed. Just go to vote. It'll be unanimous." And sure enough, that's what happened. Globe got their money! #yqrcc

I’m shocked it’s taken this long to approve. The Globe is virtually the ONLY reason to go downtown after 5:00pm. They should have voted “yes” three times over and moved on to other business. This is just embarrassing at this point. #yqrcc

Thanks for following everybody! Always appreciate hearing from folks while I'm sitting here tacking away at my laptop. We'll be talking Globe & stuff on the Queen City Improvement Bureau Thu at 7pm on @accessnowradio.ca #yqrcc

And I'll be checking my phone to see if the Globe gets their money tonight. #yqrcc

That's it for me though. I wanted to get narrative closure on the Globe's funding ask. But I have to go do thing for a kid & eat & then go say farewell to a friend who's moving. I will finish tweeting this portion of the meeting probably tomorrow. #yqrcc

Council has to go its mandatory 45 min supper break. Tsiklis will have more Qs for the Globe ED afterwards & there will be more Qs after that. Then council debate. Then… I think Tsiklis' motion on somethingsomething city priorities. But at this rate I expect that might get pushed? #yqrcc

Weaver notes their original lender was Cornerstone but they've merged w/ Connexus & they've been great to work with. #yqrcc

Weaver: We believe we could handle a $2mil mortgage but we don't want to saddle future boards w/ that debt. We want to clear the full $16mil. #yqrcc

Tsiklis: What is the path over the next few years? Weaver: Our ultimate goal is to close the capital gap. It is mostly the mortgage. It's a construction mortgage. It has to be transitioned to a fulltime mortgage. We are working w/ Connexus on this. #yqrcc

Weaver: We will use all tools at our disposal. We will not stop with the provincial government. We will keep pushing. We got the no but we keep asking. #yqrcc

Weaver: 2 weeks ago we acquired commitment of $500k from an investor who wants to remain nameless for now until their announcement. #yqrcc

Tsiklis: What steps are you taking to ensure this doesn't become a constant pressure on city reserves? Weaver: We're stewards of this organization. Our goal is to keep it healthy & get this milestone capital campaign over the line. This money will help us get that work done. #yqrcc

Tsiklis: How does the Globe see this request in relation to the General Fund Reserve? Weaver: My understanding is that the GFR is for crisis moments. One of your biggest cultural institutions is facing a crisis moment. We are also a massive economic driver to your downtown. #yqrcc

Dude. Being chair of the Finance Cmte means you fucking run their fucking meetings. It doesn't make you the Finance Special Boy. EVERY councillor has to consider impacts on reserves. Finance Cmte — if it has a purpose (debatable) — is to advise on finances. You're not *responsible* for them. #yqrcc

PD City Hall (Paul Dechene)@pdcityhall.bsky.social · 2w ago

Tsiklis: Are you aware I'm chair of the Audit & Finance Committee? Weaver: I am. T: One of my responsibilities is to consider the impact on the reserves. & the General Fund is currently $15mil below minimum. Are you aware of that? W: I am. #yqrcc

Tsiklis: Are you aware I'm chair of the Audit & Finance Committee? Weaver: I am. T: One of my responsibilities is to consider the impact on the reserves. & the General Fund is currently $15mil below minimum. Are you aware of that? W: I am. #yqrcc

Tsiklis: Yeah, the buck stops with you, eh? Thanks for everything you've shared. I guess one challenge I've had, this is such a compressed time & govt does not move quickly. We're trying our best. #yqrcc

Burton: Is Beer Bros returning? Weaver: Yes they will be returning. Perhaps under a new name. And part of why they will be returning is b/c of the Globe. Their kitchen has remained operational & we have been using them for catering. #yqrcc

Weaver: We have surveyed 26 other arts infrastructure projects, on average municipalities were giving 23 - 25% of project's total value. This additional ask will bring Regina's contribution to 20%. Which is great. But looking across Canada it puts you in a good space. #yqrcc

Weaver: We have done everything we could to keep dialogue open w/ governments, including taking out our own mortgage. We tried through all of our advocation routes to make sure spread across levels of govt make sense. #yqrcc

Burton: What do I tell people who believe the Globe has been proceeding believing the govt will backstop them no matter what? Weaver: A lot of people are not familiar w/ how a nonprofit works & how a large infrastructure project works. #yqrcc

Weaver: But in 2024, we could not stop the project. We were 25% through. We spoke w/ provincial govt for 2 years before we got the no. We are part of larger advocacy group of 16 arts orgs on prairies seeking more infrastructure funding. #yqrcc

Weaver: We had quotes that expired faster than expected, then there was COVID, tariffs. In 2024, previous director got that $9mil mortgage. At that point, government conversations started. That is when we started going over budget we could afford. #yqrcc

Burton; What steps were taken when a financial problem was imminent? Weaver: We made decisions in the project to make sure done on time & closer to expected budget. #yqrcc

Weaver: I don't think there's a heritage project that hasn't been hit w/ major problems. #yqrcc

Burton: On problems encountered that maybe should've been foreseen, can you speak to that? Weaver: Of course, that's something we diagnosed. It's a heritage building. With the stairwell, w/ everything around it, it looked fine. But when took drywall off, discovered it was fallling down. #yqrcc

Weaver: There is a great sybiosis between us & the business community. #yqrcc

Weaver is talking about the close relationship they have w/ downtown businesses. Says they've heard from all the restaurants, that on Globe theatre nights, those are the busiest nights. #yqrcc

Weaver: Even if our infrastructure funding doesn't come w/ this particular federal grant, we aren't dead in the water, there are other options. And we have local Liberal friends who are not in government but support us & are helping advocate for us. #yqrcc

Weaver: We've had a warm relationship with the federal govt. We've had 4 federal ministers in the Globe since it opened. We are in discussions with them all the time. #yqrcc

Weaver: We are dual fundraising right now. We have always operationally fundraised. So that is tricky to navigate but we are doing that. #yqrcc