New Westminster school trustee Casey Cook told the Straight the arts community and local businesses have sent a clear message regarding the fate of the 60-year-old Massey Theatre: “Keep that theatre.”

“I don’t think we’ve heard a single voice that has advocated that we tear down the Massey,” Cook said following the school board’s December 8 meeting. “I think there has been almost, if not unanimous, almost unanimous support for the Massey from the community. That message has been heard very loud and clear.”

The school district owns the 1,260-seat venue, which shares a long block with New Westminster secondary school. The city owns the adjacent Mercer Stadium.

The dilemma, according to Cook, is how to replace the aging school in a way that doesn’t mean the theatre has to go. The district is also constrained in terms of where a new school can be constructed, as the school was built in the 1940s on the unmarked graves of early pioneers, most of them Chinese.

Cook and his fellow trustees planned to tackle this matter at a capital projects information session after the December 8 meeting. However, board chair James Janzen unilaterally postponed the meeting and rescheduled it for January 9 at 10 a.m. Sessions are also planned for January 13 and 16.

Janzen cited “scheduling conflicts and just the time of year”, adding that not enough people had registered, even though some showed up expecting to address the meeting.

Georgia Straight reporter Matthew Burrows speaks with New Westminster school district trustee Casey Cook about the fate of the 60-year old Massey Theatre following the district's abridged meeting on December 8.