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City of Lethbridge celebrates completion of Yates Theatre

A special ceremony being held Friday morning (Sept. 6) to officially celebrate the completion of the Yates Memorial Theatre renovation project.

The work to spruce up the facility started back in 2016 and is now entirely finished.

Robin Harper is the General Manager of Rec and Culture for the City. He says since it reopened to the public last fall, the Yates has been a popular place.

“We’ve seen a real increase, especially in the touring groups that want to come in. We have Scott Carpenter here now who’s actually activity program it (the Yates). We’ve seen a real increase in usage, events, and performances. So we are really thrilled with that,” says Harper.

The total cost of the reno was just under $14 million with most of that money coming from the senior levels of government.

The Yates renovation included upgraded mechanical and electrical systems, a fire sprinkler system, performance audio/visual systems, acoustic treatments, upgraded finishes like paint, flooring and ceilings, catwalk relocation, dressing room revisions, seating replacements, roof replacement, barrier-free washroom upgrades, the addition of elevators, signage and a concrete floor under the auditorium.

Lethbridge Mayor Chris Spearman says the upgrades to both the Yates and Sterndale Bennett Theatre have added new opportunities and enhanced performing arts in the community. “Since the building reopened to the public, we’ve had overwhelmingly positive feedback from both audiences and performers on the improvements.”

A public celebration is planned for September 27th at the Yates, which will include backstage tours as part of the Allied Arts Council’s Arts Days.

Patrick Siedlecki
Patrick Siedlecki
Pat has been a mainstay in the CJOC News department from the time the station launched in 2007. He's been in the position of News Director since then and has been anchoring daily news casts as well as reporting and working behind the scenes. Community is important to him and keeping CJOC listeners and readers informed about what's happening across southern Alberta and beyond. Pat has been in radio broadcasting for the past 24 years, starting in Port Alberni on Vancouver Island in 1997 and then moving up island to Nanaimo for another few years before heading to Lethbridge in 2007. Pat grew up in the small Saskatchewan farming town of Foam Lake. After high school, he went to Western Academy Broadcasting College (WABC) in Saskatoon prior to moving to the island. Pat also spent several years broadcasting hockey in the BCHL as well as seven years as the radio voice of the Lethbridge Hurricanes in the WHL. Pat has been working at Cornerstone Funeral Home in Lethbridge as a Certified Life Celebrant and Funeral Assistant since 2016. News and sports have always been Pat's passion from the time he was a teenager and he's always been grateful to have had the opportunity to make that part of what's been a fun and long radio career!
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