Local group ready to reimagine The Boathouse in Kitchener's Victoria Park

A patio by the water with local food, drinks and music on a hot summer day is exactly the kind of place where people want to go after work or on the weekends to unwind, James Barr says.

Luckily, Barr and several business partners that make up Walkinshaw Holdings, say that ideal spot already exists.

It's The Boathouse in Kitchener's Victoria Park and Barr says they're hoping their vision for the shuttered venue will bring new life to the space.

"It should be the number one venue to go and have a drink after work or to go see live music or you know all of the above and it just, I mean it hasn't been that for three years, so it just seemed like a no-brainer that somebody has to try and so why not us?" Barr told CBC News.

The Boathouse is a city-owned property located on Jubilee Drive beside Victoria Park Lake. It has historically served as a music venue, but it's seen closures over the last 10 years.

In 2013, the venue closed after the tenants fell behind on rent and utility payments. It reopened in 2015 but closed abruptly in October 2019 and has sat empty ever since.

In 2021, the city said it had delayed issuing requests for proposal to secure a new tenant due to the pandemic and challenges faced by the restaurant and hospitality industry.

This past Friday, the city announced it had selected a proposal by Walkinshaw Holdings to move forward into the next stages of planning for the heritage building.

Barr says he approached his friend, Kurtis McBride, "with this sort of half joke" that they should get into the restaurant industry "which we all know is a notoriously difficult idea. And when we both kind of said yes and then realized we both weren't really joking, we decided, OK, let's do this,"

What started as a half joke led to some significant partnerships, Barr said. Walkinshaw Holdings is made up of:

• Barr, founder of Strata Research and co-founder of software development company Turnstone.
• McBride, the CEO and a co-founding member at Miovision.
• Entrepreneur Amber French who co-founded Catalyst Commons.
• Restaurant professional Shawn Flanagan who has worked locally at Public and Abe Erb.
• Sean Goodchild who works at Waterloo Brewing.
• Taylor Jones, photographer, filmmaker and partner at Digital Sabbath Film Company.
• Corey Watterson, director of global sales at Miovision

Combined, Barr says the group's experience shows "a track record of trying things that are maybe a little bit beyond what we think we can reach for and being maybe a little bit crazy enough to see if it works and not give up."

'We're trying to reimagine it'

Barr wasn't able to reveal too many specific details about the group's vision for The Boathouse as they're still in the planning stages with the city. He said the group will be respectful of the heritage of the area, but they also want to shake things up.

"We're trying to reimagine it from the ground up — from operations to menu to the way we set up sight lines to all of the things that we do including ensuring that there is music, but music that we are going to make sure gets paid regardless of cover charges," he said.

The group also wants to set up an arts fund to support local artists and they want to have a community advisory committee to oversee the venue's programming to ensure it's inclusive and diverse. 

Barr said the patio will also be an important part of The Boathouse and he could see it being open year-round, whether a person is "looking to go sit on a patio, have a drink in the summer, or maybe have a drink outside in your snow pants in the winter."

In a press release, Mayor Berry Vrbanovic and Ward 9 Coun. Deb Chapman both praised the work being done. Chapman said she thought the plans "truly complement Victoria Park and downtown Kitchener."

But for now, the proposal remains just plans. The city says any proposed modifications to the building will still require approvals and Barr says there are issues they need to talk over with the city before they can move forward.

A final agreement is not anticipated until later this year, the city said. If that's approved, it's anticipated Walkinshaw Holdings could open in the spring of 2023.

Barr says he looks forward to sharing more details in the months ahead.

"We want to make this the place that, honestly, the community has said they want it to be," he said.