UNDER CONSTRUCTION:
Werklund Centre Transformation
When I joined Werklund Centre in 2020, the organization was preparing to undertake one of the largest cultural infrastructure projects in Canadian history. But the real challenge wasn't simply delivering a major capital project. It was ensuring that the institution itself evolved alongside it.
The transformation encompasses new public infrastructure, the renewal of Olympic Plaza, the modernization of a forty-year-old performing arts centre, and the long-term financial sustainability of the institution through a permanent endowment. Together, these investments represent a once-in-a-generation opportunity to rethink how a cultural institution contributes to the life of a growing city.
When I arrived in Calgary in 2020, I wasn’t asked to build a building. I was asked to transform an institution.
❋ RelevanceRedefining, renaming, and reestablishing a 40-year-old institution’s relationship with its city.
❋ ScaleDelivering Canada’s largest cultural civic infrastructure project.
❋ PartnershipBuilding trust across governments, philanthropy, artists, organizations, and communities.
❋ City BuildingHelping redefine the role of the arts in the country’s fastest-growing city.
❋ ContinuityKeeping one of the country’s largest cultural centres operational during construction.
❋ FundraisingRaising hundreds of millions of dollars across public and private sources.
The Balancing Act
Every decision required balancing competing priorities:
While embracing…
Reinvention
Civic relevance
Annual operations
Private philanthropy
Institutional responsibility
Daily public access
Financial stewardship
Shared direction
Holding on to…
Legacy
Artistic excellence
Long-term vision
Public investment
Resident company needs
Construction
Bold Ambition
Speed
