The Niagara-on-the-Lake Museum is getting a major boost for its renovation and expansion project, securing $2 million from the Government of Canada.
The funding announcement on Wednesday was celebrated at the museum on Castlereagh Street, where MPs Chris Bittle and Tony Baldinelli attended the event.
Bittle, a Liberal representing St. Catharines, and Baldinelli, a Conservative representing Niagara Falls, which includes Niagara-on-the-Lake, helped the museum obtain the funding.
Baldinelli told The Lake Report he wrote a letter of support when the town formally applied for the grant, while Bittle helped secure the funding as part of the governing party.
“I was pleased to assist,” said Baldinelli. “Not only because I’m the local member of parliament but because I believe in what they’re doing here.”
Lord Mayor Gary Zalepa said the event showed that collaboration between parties is possible.
“Everyone thinks that partisanship is so tight, I see it really work not only locally — both parties work really close together,” Zalepa said.
Museum CEO and curator Sarah Kaufman became emotional during her remarks, saying the funding was a long time coming and that she was grateful for the support.
Kaufman told The Lake Report the effort to secure the grant took “well over a year.”
“It was long,” she said with a laugh. “It was a lot of work for staff and for our volunteers to get the community funds where they needed to be in order to apply for the grant. The town of NOTL’s funding is what really put us over the edge.”
Town council approved $500,000 in conditional funding for the project in July, contingent on the federal grant being approved.
The decision sparked debate at the time, but Coun. Andrew Niven, who also serves on the museum’s board, said it ultimately showed “people cared.”
“It shows we made the right decision,” said Niven.
Niven said he, Zalepa, Kaufman, and museum board president Susan May Wery — who also attended Wednesday’s event — met with Bittle and Baldinelli about eight months ago to share their vision.
“Right away, it wasn’t a question of ‘We’ll wait and see.’ It was like ‘How can we help?'” he said.
Kaufman said she hopes construction on the expansion will begin next year, but declined to provide further details on the fundraising total.
The project will include new gallery space, areas for community programming and educational activities, upgraded collections storage and an elevator to improve accessibility between floors.
The museum has also received major donations from both for-profit and non-profit organizations, including $150,000 from the RBC Foundation to support the elevator project and $100,000 over five years from the Rotary Club.
Kaufman said she expects another $20,000 from the Holiday House Tour event on Dec. 7.
MPP Wayne Gates, Zalepa, Couns. Wendy Cheropita and Gary Burroughs, and Sean Simpson — owner of two Simpson’s Pharmasave locations and leader of the fundraising campaign — also attended the event.
