Vancouver City Council gives green light for new PNE Amphitheatre

Artistic rendering of the new PNE Amphitheatre. (Revery Architecture/PNE)

The updated financial framework for building the new PNE Amphitheatre was unanimously approved by Vancouver City Council on Wednesday.

This follows the April 2023 public unveiling of the landmark world-class design of the 10,000-capacity venue in Hastings Park, which features an expansive free-span timber roof to provide weather protection for concert and festival attendees — effectively widening the operating season of the venue. It will be one of the largest roofs of its kind in the world.

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This will be a brand new venue with the latest equipment and facilities for event organizers, both large and small, and significantly expanded amenities. It will be constructed on the existing footprint of the 1960s-built amphitheatre, which is in very poor condition as it was intended to be temporary.

“The PNE is excited to see this project move forward — this new investment will mean technology, features, and sound mitigation will be state-of-the-art from the moment it opens,” said Shelley Frost, the CEO of the PNE, describing the design by Vancouver-based Revery Architecture.

“This new space will be a beautiful, inclusive venue, welcoming talent from across the world and enhancing summertime experiences for residents and visitors alike.”

Artistic rendering of the new PNE Amphitheatre. (Revery Architecture/PNE)

pne amphitheatre new design revery architecture

Artistic rendering of the new PNE Amphitheatre. (Revery Architecture/PNE)

The newly revised cost of $104 million is based on detailed design and engineering work, including some value-engineering design work to help reduce costs. This is up from the previous estimated preliminary budget of $65 million approved by the previous City Council in 2021 when a detailed design had not been established.

The construction cost will be 100% self-funded by the PNE through revenues generated by the venue, with the City of Vancouver providing construction financing that will be fully repayable. And the new structure enables the PNE to repay its loan within a much shorter timeline.

This new total budget includes the $82.6 million cost of building the base design of a “minimum viable facility.”

The remaining $21.1 million comes from enhanced design components that would generate additional revenue, such as a larger back of house to support bigger and more complex productions, additional VIP suites, and three permanent concession facilities including a full production kitchen. There would also be 25 more washroom units to help support the venue’s maximum spectator capacity, as well as a sound-containing wall. The added revenue-generating design components will produce $4.75 million in additional net revenue annually.

One smaller loan to support the $21.1 million cost for enhanced revenue-generating design components will be repaid within five years.

The larger main loan to support the base design cost of $82.6 million has a 23-year repayment schedule, but the PNE anticipates it will be able to expedite full repayment to 11 years due to the enhanced revenue-generating design components.

Separately, the site-wide infrastructure upgrades to support the new amphitheatre will increase by $1.4 million to $6 million due to cost escalation. This will come from the Hastings Park Reserve.

Other revenue sources include sponsorship, including naming rights for the venue. According to the PNE, their ongoing bidding process has “generated significant interest.”

Artistic rendering of the new PNE Amphitheatre. (Revery Architecture/PNE)

“I really appreciate the fact that we’re being bold and not under-building this facility. One of the concerns I have sometimes is that when we’re budget constrained, and I’ve seen this with community centres, these projects take a number of years to land in terms of the will, timing, the funding, and the economic conditions,” said Vancouver City Councillor Sarah Kirby-Yung during the City Council meeting. She is also the chair of the board of directors of the PNE, which is owned by the City.

“Sometimes when costs are tricky or escalate, and that’s the economic environment we’re in locally and globally, we sometimes see some pulling back, and I’m really appreciative that we’re not doing that here. We’re trying to build a facility that’s really going to deliver an amazing experience.”

If all goes as planned, the new amphitheatre could be ready for its first event in the summer of 2026. Construction is expected to begin in early 2024.

The new amphitheatre is one of the largest components of the City’s Hastings Park/PNE master plan created nearly a decade and a half ago. It is also the PNE’s first major new permanent entertainment venue since the construction of the Pacific Coliseum in the 1960s, which successfully served the intended purpose of attracting the NHL to Vancouver.

Another major component of the site master plan is the significant redevelopment and expansion of Playland for its evolution from an amusement park to a theme park. The new launch coaster currently under construction represents the first step of this future Playland.

Last year, during the Vancouver 2030 Olympic Winter Games bid planning process, which has since stalled, the Canadian Olympic Committee envisioned using the new PNE Amphitheatre for a daytime Olympic live site, the venue for the nightly Olympic medal ceremonies, and the venue for the Paralympic closing ceremony.

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