EDITORIAL: Founders Hall offers opening for museum

As published in The Guardian, Oct 20, 2016

© File Photo

Founders Hall in Charlottetown is now up for sale.

Memo to the Charlottetown Area Development Corporation (CADC): Delay a plan to donate remaining historical displays inside Founders Hall to Confederation Centre and Heritage P.E.I. There might be life yet for the building and items relating to Charlottetown’s 1864 Confederation Conference.

The building on the Charlottetown waterfront - mothballed since last fall although several retail tenants did operate there this summer - is now for sale.

Isn’t this an opportunity to finally move forward on a long ignored and much needed provincial museum for Prince Edward Island? The location is superb. The building is historic. And the need is great.

Just over a year ago, Rosemary Curley, the president of Nature P.E.I., came out swinging in a guest opinion in The Guardian to argue for a provincial museum. She wanted the province to tap into fresh infrastructure funds being promised by the then-new federal Liberal government.

Ms. Curley was hoping for a positive decision on a provincial legacy project to commemorate the 150th anniversary of Canadian Confederation in 2017. And what better way to proceed than on a human and natural history museum? We are the only province without one.

Sadly, her plea has fallen on deaf ears.

There has been a general underwhelming interest in celebrating the sesquicentennial of Canada’s founding, especially in the cradle of Confederation and despite our own successful 150th celebrations in 2014.

The lure of federal infrastructure money saw the province recently commit to a massive $65 million Cornwall bypass project. Is the Cornwall bypass going to be the provincial legacy for 2017?

The surge in cruise ship and tourist traffic in recent years has failed to pay dividends at Founders Hall. Why? The waterfront has been booming, especially since 2014 when the Confederation Landing Park hosted numerous events. But tourists and Islanders seem to have skipped Founders Hall.Founders Hall opened in 2001 after the former rail car shop was converted into an attraction saluting our founding fathers. It did have successful early years but tourism numbers have fallen. The decline is blamed on outdated displays that didn't prove popular in the digital age. Modern interactive exhibits might have drawn more visitors but CADC seemed to have quickly given up on this facility.

CADC wants the private sector to try something else - to develop the property as a multi-purpose retail venue to bring people to the waterfront. The corporation acknowledges its initial investment did pay off and the building was a significant player in the rejuvenation of the eastern end of the city. So why did its support for Founders Hall come to an abrupt end?

P.E.I. was left without a permanent legacy for 2014, despite the enormous benefits to the city and province from the Confederation Centre national memorial built for our 1964 celebrations. Now it appears the same fate is imminent for 2017.

Before the rush continues to divest this potential treasure, someone must step forward and explore the museum options for Founders Hall before it becomes another condo development obscuring the waterfront.

There is need for vision.