About $1.7 million in renovations are planned for the McPherson Playhouse this summer in part to help people in the balcony stay awake.
Members of the Capital Regional District finance committee on Wednesday recommended awarding a $1.73 million contract for renovations to the 1914 building to upgrade existing heating and ventilation systems, add air conditioning and renovate dressing rooms.
The McPherson has a reputation for two things: a steep balcony and poor air quality, Royal & McPherson Theatres Society executive director Lloyd Fitzsimonds told committee members.
“Patrons don’t generally articulate it as having a high CO2 level. They simply articulate it as: ‘We can’t hear and it’s hard to pay attention in the balcony,’ ” Fitzsimonds said.
“A lot of that ‘can’t hear and can’t pay attention’ is because of the air quality. We’ve done enough testing in the past year to know that our CO2 level is high enough to be a notable issue. I think 1,000 parts per million is top of acceptable and we run about 2,300 parts per million.”
The poor air quality has made it difficult for some organizations to sell seats in the balcony, but it’s probably the various improvements over the years that have contributed to the problem.
“When the building was built, there were no doors. Everything was a drape and the air flowed through the building quite freely. In the past 100 years, many a renovation has simply sealed that building up to the point that the air quality is just no longer acceptable,” he said.
Construction is to start in May with completion by Dec. 1. The playhouse is to be closed to all functions from July 1 to Oct. 10 to allow for major work.
Fitzsimonds said projected loss of revenue during the closing is minimal — probably about $40,000.
“It’s a good year for us for this [to do this work]. We were already losing the summer. Blue Bridge has been a resident theatre company for the last five years in the summer and this year they’ve moved into their new home.
“Over the last 15 years, July and August and the first half of September have gone empty most times except for the five years of Blue Bridge,” he said.
CRD general manager of finance Diana Lokken said about $400,000 worth of work to repoint the building’s brick work is also to be done — funded through the building’s capital budget.
Committee chairman Frank Leonard noted that the improvements will just about exhaust the building’s capital reserve fund of $1.75 million.
The committee recommendation still needs approval from the CRD board.
