Cape Breton arts centre says tourism will be hurt by province’s budget cuts

CITYnews halifax/ By Steve Gow

An arts centre in Inverness is now highlighting how devastating the recent provincial budget cuts will be for Cape Breton tourism.

On Feb. 23, the provincial government released its $1.2 billion deficit budget for 2026-27, which included a cut of around $130 million in funding for arts and culture programs.

Since then, arts, culture and heritage groups have spoken out, saying the cuts were cruel and misguided.

On March 4, hundreds protested outside the legislature in Halifax to voice their opposition to the budget changes.

The Inverness County Centre for the Arts (ICCA) is adding its voice to those concerns, saying the cuts will be hard on Cape Breton, which relies heavily on art and culture for tourism revenue.

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“If you just want to talk about it in economic terms, (art) supports the tourism sector because people come here, they come to golf, they come to hear music, they come to look at art, and those are the kinds of things we do at the centre,” says ICCA board co-chair Tamara Deverell. “Now our operating budget, which is mostly through these grants, has been cut by 20 per cent.”

Deverell says the cuts mean the popular, long-running Sunset Series outdoor summer concerts will be cancelled, with important programs for youth and seniors also in danger of disappearing.

An Oscar-nominated production designer who will be attending the upcoming Academy Awards for her work on Frankenstein, Deverell says she moved to Cape Breton eight years ago because of the thriving arts and culture, which draws thousands of people to the region every year.

According to a Cape Breton University tourism study, nearly a quarter of visitors said arts and culture were a motivator for coming to the island in 2024.

“We just sort of fell in love with the place, the people, and the arts and culture,” says Deverell about why she moved to Cape Breton, adding the ICCA has now joined with other Cape Breton organizations like Celtic Colours, the Eltuek Arts Centre and others to create what she described as a culture sector team.

“(We aim) to approach the federal government to ask for funds in the absence of provincial support, which puts us as pawns in a game between the Liberals and the Conservatives, (but) we have to do whatever to get money.”

Deverell adds the ICCA’s annual fundraiser, planned for late April, will have more urgency than usual as the centre will need to rely more on private donations in lieu of the cuts.