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City council expresses early support for backing new film studio

Non-profit organization Cultural Industries Ontario North has requested $7 million in municipal support toward the creation of a $39.3-million facility called Freshwater Production Studios

Throwing their support behind a new film studio, city council offered early indication this week they will offer financial support when Cultural Industries Ontario North (CION) applies next year.

“This should be a no-brainer,” Ward 11 Coun. Bill Leduc said during Tuesday’s meeting, citing an estimate the proposed Freshwater Productions Studios project would create 1,384 jobs by its fifth year and generate $60 million in new annual revenue for local businesses.

Tuesday’s meeting included a motion by city administration for council to support the Freshwater Production Studios project as a candidate for the Employment Land Community Improvement Plan – a program the city plans on launching next year.

In the event funds are granted, they will be provided in the form of a rebate on taxes paid once the film studio is operational. The proponents are seeking a total of $7 million from the city.

“The risk here is very minimal to us,” Mayor Paul Lefebvre told city council on Tuesday, noting the proponents need to make good on what they say they’re going to do before receiving a tax break.

Ward 1 Coun. Mark Signoretti was the lone voice opposing Tuesday’s motion, clarifying, “I’m not against investment, but the right investment and within the right location in Greater Sudbury.”

He questioned the proposed financial and economic benefits, and the studio’s viability in a marketplace which is seeing various other studios spring up.

Sudbury.com reached out to CION associate executive director Patrick O’Hearn following Tuesday’s meeting for more insight on the project’s anticipated benefits and why a location on The Kingsway, next to the proposed site of the now-cancelled Kingsway Entertainment District municipal arena project, was selected.

“We’re really looking at a campus here, and not just three sound stages,” he said of the $39.3-million studio proposal, noting there’s plenty of room to grow on a 24-acre parcel of land.

Plus, the developer is contributing land as well as design and construction services.

The projection of creating 1,384 jobs by its fifth year and generating $60 million in new annual revenue for local businesses was derived from a consultant’s work using Nordicity data, which he said is also used to develop annual reports for the film industry each year.

Film and television productions are big-scale ventures, O’Hearn said, and the proposed studio would accommodate larger productions than Greater Sudbury is currently able to host.

“It takes a really large team ... on any production,” he said, pointing to producers, actors, carpenters, set painters and various other people who make productions a reality.

Although the projections are derived from current realities and do not factor in the various film studios currently being planned or under construction, O’Hearn said he’s confident in them.

“Across Ontario right now, there’s such a need for studio space, that even with what is being built in Mississauga and other places, we’re not going to be able to meet the demand without a lot more space,” he said. 

“We’re turning business away, which means we’re not capitalizing on the opportunities we should be.”

Although Northern Ontario Film Studios already exists in Northern Ontario and maintains headquarters in Sudbury, O’Hearn said he doesn’t believe the new studio will take away from the businesses already operating in the region.

“Having a vibrant ecosystem with a number of pieces of infrastructure helps promote all that co-ordinated opportunity that we’ve built up here in Northern Ontario,” he said. “We’re very happy to draw attention to the existing studio space. It’s all about that growth.”

City Economic Development director Meredith Armstrong shared a similar sentiment with Sudbury.com, noting the proposed studio is anticipated to contribute to a “cluster effect” already taking hold in Greater Sudbury to spur further growth.

“Sudbury is an excellent example of what some people will call co-opetition,” she said, adding that although there are local competitors, their proximity creates “that cluster, that brain trust and talent pool” that benefits everyone in the end.

“We have a really good track record of smaller and medium-sized productions, and this will allow us to attract larger productions,” she said of the proposed studio.

“It’s been identified over many years that permanent facilities for filming and studio facilities in particular are the gap that needs to be addressed on a larger scale for the sustainability of the industry.”

The studio proponents’ total request of the municipality is $7 million in support toward the private project via tax rebates. The cost of constructing the studio is anticipated to be covered by $17 million from private investors (pending municipal support) and a bank loan.

Accommodating Freshwater Production Studios at The Kingsway would also require investments in infrastructure, including the development of an intersection at its entrance. The intersection is identified in the Official Plan as a connector from Levesque Road south of The Kingsway to Elisabella Street/Lasalle Boulevard to the north. 

There might be a cost-sharing agreement between the city and developer, but Armstrong said this would be a separate discussion and decision point of city council.

Although city council expressed early indication of support on Tuesday, Armstrong clarified nothing is guaranteed. CION still has to submit a proposal through the Employment Land Community Improvement Plan process, once it’s developed and available next year.

Once submitted, city council will decide on whether to approve their proposal, as well as whether to proceed with a cost-sharing plan for infrastructure improvements.

Tyler Clarke covers city hall and political affairs for Sudbury.com.


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Tyler Clarke

About the Author: Tyler Clarke

Tyler Clarke covers city hall and political affairs for Sudbury.com.
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