SUMMERSIDE, P.E.I. - With the announcement of a huge private sector donation in support of a new science and discovery centre in Charlottetown, the fate of a similar project in the works for Summerside could be less certain.
The Homburg family of companies announced Tuesday that it has pledged a $9-million gift to launch a 15,000-square-foot science and discovery facility in the Confederation Court Mall in downtown Charlottetown.
That project appears similar to Summerside Discovery and Research Centre, which has been in the works for nearly a decade but gained momentum over the past three years.
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Its main proponents have been the Y Service Club of Summerside and the Bedeque Bay Environmental Management Association (BBEMA). The City of Summerside has also supported the project, contributing $5,227 towards the initial study in 2015, agreeing to lease four acres of land for $1 per year, at the end of MacKenzie Drive for the building and promising future property tax abatements.
Most of the money for Summerside’s project is slated to come from a capital campaign and industry donations. It is expected to be mostly staffed by volunteers and include a planetarium, research rooms, displays and science-based entertainment options for children, among other things.
Summerside Mayor Bill Martin greeted Tuesday’s announcement with concern, noting the amount of time, effort and money that has already gone into the Summerside project.
“Yeah … that’s probably going to end up being a setback for our discovery centre, depending on what the provincial involvement in the project is. We need the province involved in (our) project, and they’ve had our request for a while now,” said Martin, adding that the steering committee managing the project has yet to hear back from the province.
A representative of BBEMA was reached for comment Tuesday but deferred comment until there was time to discuss the situation with partner organizations.