After what seemed to be a marathon of a process, the Dionne Quints Home is finally on the move in just a matter of days. November 19 will see the iconic North Bay structure moved in three pieces to its new location on Oak Street near the Discovery North Bay Museum.
“November 19 is when you’ll see the home on its transporter, and lowered onto its new home’s foundation,” Ed Valenti, chair of the Dionne Quints Heritage Board said at the North Bay City Council meeting Tuesday night. “It’s been a long process and somewhat difficult, but we managed to make it a go and we’re all happy with that.”
He said the structure would be moved in three pieces, just like last time it was moved, and that the Dionne Quints Heritage Board was now seeking aid from the city for the operational costs of the first year, as the structure settles into its new location and new life.
“Next steps are formalizing an operational procedure with the city,” Valenti said. “One of the other steps is to secure some government funding on Provincial and Federal levels for capital infrastructure spending and operational grants.”
However, some members of council were surprised and disappointed by the presentation made by Valenti, asking for funding considering they were under the impression the Quints Home would be more of a static display or at least funded by community support—or higher levels of government, not the municipality.
“The way I recall the table first being set when that group came to council it was just ‘please don’t move it to another community, that’s all we want, we’ll fundraise for it, we have lots of support out there and we don’t need operational dollars,’ Coun. Daryl Vaillancourt said. “It feels like the old bait and switch now they’re asking us for $35,000.”
Coun. Mark King, chair of community services was equally unimpressed with the move by the Dionne Quints Heritage Board.
“It was a sore point with me,” King said after the meeting. “I knew what was going to transpire and what’s happening. I remember specifically, I listened to council say ‘static display’ and that’s the way I thought it was going to develop. Obviously, it’s turned another page and there is a cost incurred.”
Despite the thoughts on council, Valenti was confident that the Board would find a financial solution to the operating costs for the first year of the Dionne Home, which would require the initial boost to get the operation going before it can sustain itself as well as with aid from higher levels of government.
“The money is for the first year of operation,” he said. “We understand originally the city didn’t want any future operational cost, but this is more of a start-up and we want to be frugal and raise additional funds. There has been a lot of doubt on the move of the home so when people see it [in the new location] I think that’s when people will change their view.”
Valenti said if council does not support funding the Board, their fallback would be fundraising and government grants.
“Whatever we need to secure, looking for memberships on a yearly basis,” he said. “We like to look from a positive view that the city will help us in this initial phase.”
