The Arts Office and the North Vancouver Recreation Commission are joining together to become the new North Vancouver Recreation and Culture Commission - a change finalized by both the City and District of North Vancouver.
The consolidation will bring together municipal cultural expertise, enhance arts and cultural programming and services in North Vancouver and achieve improvements and efficiencies in service delivery, all within one organization, according to a press release.
"We see this as an exciting opportunity to strengthen arts and culture programs and services and enhance our work in promoting the health benefits of recreation and culture," said Doug Green, chair of the North Vancouver Recreation Culture Commission.
The changes come after an extensive review of the benefits and opportunities of merging the two operations.
"Our consolidation is not being done for financial reasons per se, its being done because it provides the opportunity to improve and enhance our services in both recreation and culture and it brings together all the cultural expertise into one organization," said Anne Rodgers, communications specialist for the North Vancouver Recreation Commission.
"We expect there will be efficiencies and cost savings, but exact numbers we can't know at this time. It won't be until all the decisions on structure and services are finalized, so the consolidation is an ongoing process as we work with our teams."
The bylaws to establish the consolidation and change the name of the commission were adopted by the City and District Councils on June 23.
The North Vancouver Recreation Commission's role included the provision of recreation and arts programs, community events and the operation of Centennial Theatre, while the Arts Office managed public art and granting programs, assisted city and district departments in cultural planning, promoted arts and culture and provided support to many local arts organizations.
Rodgers said the model to have recreation and arts and culture in one department already exists in most other communities and municipalities.
