Donations for 24 Sussex renovation reach 11% of the $50 million goal

OTTAWA — The foundation running the government’s efforts to raise money to renovate the prime minister’s official residence says donations are up sevenfold since early August, while also announcing that a council has been created to add fuel to the campaign.

In a news release to be released Wednesday, the Rideau Hall Foundation also said its campaign has achieved a “significant milestone” by topping 4,000 donors who have contributed a total of $5.7 million. That’s 11.4 per cent of the $50-million target that was established in June, when Prime Minister Mark Carney unveiled a process to restore the 35-room stone mansion.

Less than three months ago, the foundation had raised just $735,000 to help make 24 Sussex Dr. habitable.

That government’s reno process includes making the foundation responsible for raising private donations for the restoration project and holding an open competition for bids to renovate the historic home, which has been vacant for 11 years.

The update also announced the new Council for 24 Sussex, a group of “distinguished” supporters of the project who will add their voices, expertise and access to networks, while helping raise awareness and encourage contributions. The council will include at least 23 members from across the country.

Although the campaign remains far from its target, the foundation said Canadians have shown broad support for a project “rooted in the idea that important national institutions are worthy of renewal.”

The contributions reflect “a growing community of Canadians coming together, at all levels, around a shared national project,” the news release says.

The prime minister’s residence in downtown Ottawa has been vacant for more than a decade. It had been plagued by criticisms from former prime ministers who lived there and an array of problems: heating and cooling, outdated wiring, asbestos, water damage, mould, rats, and more practical problems such as insufficient space for offices and events.

While most of the problems have been dealt with, Carney and Justin Trudeau, his predecessor as prime minister, have lived across the road at Rideau Cottage on the grounds of the Governor General’s residence at Rideau Hall.

Built in the late 1860s by a lumber baron and MP, the home has been the prime minister’s official residence since 1951 and home to 10 Canadian leaders.

Heritage advocates cheered the government’s announcement earlier this year that the historic building would finally be fully renovated and possibly expanded, but questions were also raised that the appeal for donations could create possible conflicts of interest.

The big remaining question is whether decision makers opt for a modest renovation that makes the property functional for future prime ministers, or whether a more elaborate proposal will be chosen. A construction budget has not yet been announced, but the government expects to announce a winning design proposal and its plan by July 1.

National Post

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