Rising construction costs mean changes to Vancouver Art Gallery’s new building
Unforeseen price escalation prompts gallery to issue an update on the project’s progress
The latest design for the Vancouver Art Gallery.
VANCOUVER ART GALLERY is feeling the pinch of rising construction costs. All across Canada, such expenses have increased by up to 60 percent between 2020 and 2024, according to a release. The upshot is an unprecedented and unforeseen price escalation for VAG’s new building at the corner of West Georgia and Cambie Streets, with overall project costs going up from $400 million to $600 million in the past two years alone.
Consequently, the gallery has announced that it will be taking steps to ensure prudent financial management in light of the new price tag. Those steps will include a “revised capital project timeline in order to address rising costs through changes to the building design, while simultaneously looking for opportunities to create a multi-faceted cultural hub for the Province of British Columbia and Canada”, according to the release.
Despite the setback, the gallery says it will continue to work on the project and to raise funds for its completion, including ongoing operations of the new structure. The building is to open in 2027.
To date, VAG has raised more than $350 million and completed the first stage of pre-construction work at the new site. In 2021, the Audain Foundation made a record-breaking $100-million donation to VAG for its new 330,000-square-foot facility from Swiss-based architectural firm Herzog & de Meuron. In 2022, the federal government injected $29.3 million into the new building, with $25 million coming from Infrastructure Canada’s green and inclusive community buildings program, in recognition of the fact that the planned gallery will be the first of its kind built to Passive House standards in North America. The other $4.3 million came from the Department of Canadian Heritage.
In 2019, the VAG received a $40-million donation from the Burrard Group’s Chan family, and the building that is to house the Vancouver Art Gallery will be named the Chan Centre for Visual Arts. Another $50 million has been raised from individual donors.
The design is to encompass exterior copper cladding that is woven in reference to traditional Indigenous blankets from the region.
As planning continues for the project’s next phase, VAG says it will issue further updates as new information becomes available. “The Gallery and its Association Board of Trustees remain committed to building a dynamic cultural hub to serve the diverse needs of the community and future generations,” the release states. 
Related Articles
