MACKENZIE — Two years after learning they would be evicted from their home of 31 years, members of the Mackenzie Community Arts Council are still hard at work renovating their new headquarters.
The council, 103.5 CHMM-FM radio station, the hospital auxiliary thrift shop, the seniors' centre and the Mackenzie Museum were all located in the Ernie Bodin Community Centre, built in 1970.
According to the museum’s website, Bodin ran the first private business in Mackenzie and owned the first non-company house.
The centre, a collection of 25 modular buildings, originally served as the town’s hospital before the Mackenzie and District Hospital and Health Centre was built.
Well past the end of its projected lifespan, tenants were informed in 2023 they would have to vacate the building due to structural concerns.
Speaking to The Citizen on July 3, council president Michelle Bobrel said the owners of Mackenzie’s defunct Sikh temple at 9 Laurier Dr. were looking to transfer the building to a local community group around that same time.
“There were about 200 strong,” Bobrel said of the former Sikh community. “Then in 2008, with the mill closures, a whole bunch of people lost their jobs. At that point, there was kind of a mass exodus to the Surrey area, and now there are only two families left in town.
“With only two families, there wasn’t really much going on and it was starting to fall into a state of disrepair.”
When word spread that evictions were likely at the community centre, Bobrel said the temple building was offered to several groups. She thought the seniors’ centre or the thrift store would take it on — but both declined.
“No one else wanted to take it on, and we were crazy enough to decide we would — because our alternative was pretty much to dissolve as an organization,” Bobrel said. “We’ve been going for 50 years … you don’t want to lose that legacy.”
The arts council purchased the property for $1 in September 2023, on the condition they name the former temple the Herbant Singh Building. The overall site — which also includes Mackenzie’s Men’s Shed and a new community shed in progress — will be known as Caribou Place.
Once inside, structural issues with the roof were discovered. Temporary support walls were built on both floors, and a local contractor supplied a carpenter and labourers to repair the trusses over several months at a cost of about $100,000.
The roof shingles still need to be replaced.
While the building was unusable, Bobrel said the council hosted programming outdoors and at community events to maintain its presence.
One temporary wall remains on the upper floor. This summer, the council is running a mural-making camp, and the frame will hold the children’s artwork.
Earlier on July 3, Bobrel said a building inspector confirmed the upper floor was cleared for camp use.
Although the program begins after the school year ends, organizers hope some recent graduates will create a commemorative mural.
The wall frame will also be reused for Halloween and Christmas events before eventually being removed.
Roof repairs were completed in spring 2024, allowing the council to move its equipment to the site on Aug. 1. That included the local potters’ guild and its kilns and wheels.
Additional completed work includes a new accessible front entrance — costing about $20,000 — and the replacement of electric baseboard heaters with a high-efficiency gas furnace.
Previously, the electric heat cost the council $1,600 every two months just to prevent the pipes from freezing. The new furnace has “drastically cut the expense,” Bobrel said.
One of the next major projects is replacing carpet on both levels and levelling the bottom floor.
At the Regional District of Fraser–Fort George board meeting on June 19 — held at the Mackenzie Recreation Centre — $9,921 in grant funding was approved for the flooring.
Bobrel said Centerra Gas also contributed $5,000, and Enbridge donated another $5,000 to complete the flooring in the potters’ guild space, which is now done.
To finalize that space, a sink still needs to be removed and a “wheel bank” — featuring electrical outlets for multiple pottery wheels — must be installed. That work will allow the guild to resume operations, which have been on hold since the move.
“One of the biggest things I foresee is a lot of electrical work being done for the bank, because it’s not up to code,” Bobrel said.
On the lower level, the council also plans to convert a bathroom into a kitchenette.
In an office in the back corner, an employee currently shares space with a small gift shop selling locally made items. The plan is to eventually convert that room into a one-bedroom suite to host artists-in-residence.
The woman who previously hosted visiting artists is preparing to retire and sell her home, so the new suite would allow that program to continue. The gift shop would be relocated upstairs.
The remainder of the top floor will be fitted with portable dividers, so it can flexibly serve as a venue, program space or classroom as needed.
The lower floor would become a community boardroom and makerspace, with room to accommodate larger pottery classes.
To improve accessibility, one of the two front staircases will be removed to install a chair lift.
The province’s Rural Economic Diversification and Infrastructure Program (REDIP) has provided $498,000 for architectural and engineering work related to the lift. That funding will also cover Bobrel’s salary for a year, exterior painting, window replacement and help with the flooring.
Bobrel is now applying for other grants, including $300,000 from the Northern Development Initiative Trust, and additional funds through BC Community Gaming Grants, arts infrastructure programs and more.
One of the largest remaining costs is the $130,000 needed to repave the Caribou Place parking lot.
Despite the generous grants received so far, the council still must pay GST on many project elements — estimated at $35,000 — and is actively seeking corporate sponsors and donors.
They also plan to launch a Kickstarter campaign soon, offering rewards to backers. Donors who contribute $5,000 or more will have their name inscribed on a cornerstone plaque alongside the Sikh community that gifted the building.
Those interested in donating can contact Bobrel at [email protected].
There’s still a lot of work ahead, but Bobrel is excited about what the new arts centre could mean for the town.
In Mackenzie, she said, there’s often a tension between the narrative that the community is a “ghost town” — with people leaving due to industry closures — and the view that those who remain are here to stay.
“I want a place where my kids — when they approach teenagehood in a few years — have healthy activities and a strong sense of community,” Bobrel said.
“That’s why I’m excited. As a newcomer, I don’t necessarily have family or friendship bonds here. But it’s about what we build — what we create space for. The community is changing, and it’s going to stay on its feet.”
Having lived in Calgary and Edmonton, Bobrel said driving across a city can take two hours. She hopes more people in Prince George will recognize that a two-hour drive to Mackenzie isn’t far — especially for hosting weddings or enjoying outdoor recreation like mountain biking.
On Aug. 23, the council will host a celebration to mark the halfway point of renovations. Since the building was in no condition for a move-in party, they’re calling it a “groundbreaking” ceremony.
The event will feature a barbecue, cake, speeches, mural displays, games and more — all in celebration of those who helped them get this far and to welcome potential new supporters.
Upcoming events include the Rockin’ the Ridgeline music, biking and art festival — held in partnership with the Mackenzie Outdoor Route and Trail Association — and a Sept. 21 pancake breakfast at the local Legion.
With a donated electric piano, the council also plans to offer music lessons. Another volunteer is organizing Spanish classes.
