The former Paramount Theatre on Kings Square may have a new lease on life - Uptown Saint John Inc. officials have entered into a short-term agreement with the current building owner to explore ways in which the old theatre can potentially be used.
Over the past couple of months Uptown Saint John Inc. has been in talks with the current owner of the Paramount Theatre, Daeres Trucking and Demolition, to stall and perhaps eliminate the possibility of the building’s demolition.
“We are fortunate to be dealing with a property owner who really doesn’t want to demolish the building if there is another use for it,” said Matt Alexander, President of Uptown Saint John. “We feel that there is community support for the building’s renewal, and that is why we’ve entered into a short-term option agreement to explore the possibility of re-purposing the building for one or more new uses.”
Uptown Saint John Inc. has purchased a short-term option to see what uses the community may have for the old theatre, if it were rehabilitated. A feasibility study will be conducted over the next ten weeks to see if there is a solid case for the building’s renewal. Funding for the study is provided by the Province of New Brunswick thanks to the efforts of Ed Doherty.
“This will be a highly consultative process where we will be engaging the public and various key stakeholders to gain insight into what might be appropriate uses for this large flexible structure” said Peter Asimakos, General Manager of Uptown Saint John Inc. “It’s a clean slate and a large one so we know that there could be a number of compatible uses taking place in the building.”
In 2008 Uptown Saint John unveiled the District Wealth Creation Strategy that made a number of recommendations on how to leverage existing cultural assets in the uptown, for economic gain and added vibrancy to the area. “We are being strategic in our efforts by following the recommendations of this strategy – one of its key recommendations is the identification of seven precincts within the uptown.” The Paramount Theatre was identified as being a key asset in the King’s Square Performing Arts District which envisions building on the success of the Imperial Theatre utilizing indoor and outside spaces in and around the Square.
