PNE secures $98M loan from Vancouver for amphitheatre
Posted July 12, 2023 3:26 pm.
Last Updated July 12, 2023 3:31 pm.
Months after unveiling a bold design for a new amphitheatre, the Pacific National Exhibition (PNE) has secured a $98.9 million loan from the City of Vancouver.
Council voted unanimously in favour of loaning the money to the PNE to fund the project.
The plan is to replace the existing amphitheatre with a covered, dome-like, mass-timber structure, which will ultimately hold roughly 10,000 people.
Concept art for the new PNE amphitheatre. (Courtesy Twitter/@PNE_Playland)
The PNE says the new design will address noise concerns from the surrounding community, with complaints about these issues dating back decades.
When completed, the organization says the amphitheatre’s roof will be longer than the Richmond Oval’s, and will be “one of the longest clear-span roofs in the world.”
The design is by a Vancouver-based architecture company, and a spokesperson for the business says they wanted to create “a unique experience for both the audience and performers.”
The PNE says its plans have been in the works for years, and construction is slated to start in early 2024 and finish in the summer of 2026.
The nonprofit has 11 years to pay the loan back.
-With files from Emily Marsten
