Dear Editor
One only has to look at the municipality’s quarterly reports to see that Meaford Hall revenues are down and attendance is down. Walk into the building any day of the week and you can see it is devoid of people. The community has been kept out due to high cost and a management style that has alienated them. The Hall has not lived up to initial expectations and scenarios put forth by the community when SuperBuild funding was granted nearly seven years ago for its restoration into an arts centre.
It is not surprising that the contract for General Manager of Meaford Hall is not to be renewed and even eliminated as indicated in the recent Operations Review Report.
This manager promoted at first a ‘building for hire’ policy and then a mixed model of a ‘facility for hire’ with a theatre that would be used for presentations bought by the Hall or others. The first model was slammed by those in the arts community as not a viable option for an arts centre, one doomed to failure and one that certainly would bring in no outside grants. The second model has been limiting. Council ignored all previous management reports and professional critiques and kept on a business plan path put forth by the current manager.
Has council finally woken up and smelled the coffee!?
Meaford Hall has so much potential. It has yet to be realized.
Fortunately, as reported in the Ops Review, the CAO wants to see the operation of Meaford Hall corrected. More importantly he sees that the Hall is a community facility, paid for with our taxes and crying out for help. He wants to see the community have their say. The CAO and staff want to engage residents by forming a Citizen Task Force in the creation of a new strategy and business plan for Meaford Hall that ‘will focus on re-positioning Meaford Hall as a strong community driven arts and cultural centre’.
I’d say: “Let’s get it right this time!”
Kerry Riley, Meaford
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