Kitchener's Boathouse redevelopment receives final approval from council

Plans to redevelop The Boathouse in Kitchener's Victoria Park received final approval during Monday night's council meeting.

A group of local investors that operate under name Walkinshaw Holdings will lease the Boathouse from the city to create a music venue that will provide food and drink. The building has sat empty since October 2019.

In August, the city said the group wants to make three significant changes:

• An addition to the west facade of the building for a new washroom.
• A cantilevered patio that extends over part of the lake.
• Adjustments to windows and doors, including a new entrance.

The city said a heritage assessment found the alterations would not adversely impact Victoria Park or the Victoria Park Neighborhood Heritage Conservation District.

The city said Tuesday that construction is expected to begin in early 2023 and it's anticipated the venue will open to the public in the summer.

Closures over last decade

The Boathouse is a city-owned property located on Jubilee Drive beside Victoria Park Lake. It has historically served as a music venue but has had a rocky past 10 years.

In 2013, the venue closed after the tenants fell behind on rent and utility payments. It reopened in 2015 but closed abruptly in October 2019 and has sat empty ever since.

In 2021, the city said it had delayed issuing requests for proposals to secure a new tenant due to the pandemic and challenges faced by the restaurant and hospitality industry.

'It should be the number 1 venue'

In an interview in August, James Barr of Walkinshaw Holdings shared the group's vision for The Boathouse with CBC Kitchener-Waterloo.

"It should be the number 1 venue to go and have a drink after work or to go see live music or you know all of the above and it just, I mean it hasn't been that for three years, so it just seemed like a no-brainer that somebody has to try and so why not us?" Barr said.

"We're trying to reimagine it from the ground up from operations to menu to the way we set up sight lines to all of the things that we do including ensuring that there is music, but music that we are going to make sure gets paid regardless of cover charges."

In a press release in August, Mayor Berry Vrbanovic and Ward 9 Coun. Deb Chapman both praised the work being done. Chapman said she thought the plans "truly complement Victoria Park and downtown Kitchener."