Historic Khyber building gets $200K from Ottawa for redevelopment
Non-profit aims to create a space that puts artist livelihoods 'at the forefront’
A legendary building in Halifax is getting some help from the federal government to restore it to its former glory.
The Turret Arts Space Society owns the 135-year-old Victorian building on Barrington Street that's known as the Khyber.
The society's president, Emily Davidson, says there's a lot of excitement about the $200,000 funding announcement.
"The art space gets to take the next step into making our big dream a reality," Davidson said.
"What that looks like for us has been a concerted effort in planning and design, and also paired up with the existing [Halifax Regional Municipality] funds, we're going to get the ball rolling on hazardous materials abatement."
Storied history
Erected in 1888 as a Church of England institute, in the 1970s it became a nightclub operated by the Gay Alliance for Equality. In the early '80s, it was a gallery space before becoming a music venue in the '90s.
The municipality shuttered the building in 2014 due to building code violations and evidence of hazardous materials such as asbestos. It sold the building in 2018 for $1 to the 1588 Barrington Street Building Preservation Society — a not-for-profit organization founded for the sole purpose of purchasing and redeveloping the building.
The municipality also committed $250,000 to the project, and Davidson said she hopes the provincial government will step up as well.
In 2019, the 1588 Barrington Street Building Preservation Society said it needed a total of $3.5 million to renovate and update the building.
The society aims to provide spaces and programming for local artists and non-profit organizations. It says renovations to the building will also improve accessibility.
"We're in a great position to be developing this site. But we know that the housing crisis, the real estate market as it is, are actually hurting artists in our community," Davidson said.
"So that's actually one of the impetuses for this project. How can we make a thriving arts centre that buffers some of those conditions and really puts artists' livelihood at the forefront?"