Small Arms Society Update – We Need Your Help – Message from Diane LaPointe-Kay, President, Small Arms Society

Update: Great presentation by Diane LaPointe-Kay, President, Small Arms Society at June 15, 2016 City of Mississauga Council meeting. The presentation was well received and led to wide-ranging discussion by Councillors and the Mayor. Please remember: June 22 is deadline for your Letter of Support on behalf of the Creative Hub Project at Small Arms Building. Jaan Pill photo

Click here for previous posts regarding the Small Arms Society >

I am pleased to have the opportunity to share with you the following message from Diane LaPointe-Kay, President, Small Arms Society:

Dear Friends of the Small Arms Building,

On Wednesday June 15th, at the City of Mississauga – General Committee, the Mayor and Members of Council will receive an in-camera staff report. Back in February, 2016 the Toronto Region Conservation Authority (owners of the Small Arms Building) sent a letter to the City of Mississauga seeking financial support from the City for the rehabilitation of the building.

Over the last number of months, the Small Arms Society has been actively working with the City of Mississauga as well as engaging stakeholders and community members about the opportunities to develop a Creative Hub at the Small Arms Building.

View of interior of south end of Small Arms Building following removal of non-load bearing walls, April 10, 2015. The windows in the photo are facing toward the west. Beyond the windows is the site of Canada’s First Aerodrome. Jaan Pill photo

This will be a very important report and we are hopeful that it will mean a positive step in securing additional funds for Phase 1 of capital improvements and further resources for the Small Arms Building.

There are two ways you can support this initiative:

1. Attend the General Committee Meeting:

The Small Arms Society plans to do a deputation and presentation at the General Committee meeting to Mayor and Council. We would like as many stakeholders and community supporters in attendance of the meeting. Your participation will further demonstrate to Council the strong community interest we have for this important property as a future Creative Hub.

View looking east toward Toronto during demolition of interior of south end of Small Arms Building. A crew of volunteers from Habitat for Humanity Halton-Mississauga completed the task in mid-April 2015.  Jaan Pill photo (April 10, 2015)

Here are the details:

Wednesday, June 15, 2016
9:00 a.m.
General Committee – City of Mississauga
Council Chambers
300 City Centre Drive
(Parking located underground or on street level)

Please RSVP to dlapointekay@gmail.com if you plan to attend.

2. Letter of Support [please send by June 22, 2016]

Another important way you can voice your interest is through a Letter of Support. Would you or your organization prepare a letter of support for a Creative Hub at the Small Arms Building? By taking this step it will lend further credibility to this very important city building initiative.

Mississauga-based performance company Frog in Hand presented a special, one-time performance of their latest stage presentation at a Small Arms Doors Open event at the Small Arms Building on Sept. 27, 2014. Frog in Hand creates multi-disciplinary performances in unusual spaces, in this case at the same factory shop floor where weapons were inspected during the Second World War. The view is facing toward the west. Jaan Pill photo

I have enclosed a Draft Letter of Support, please feel free to use this template and/or adapt it to best communicate your interest. Letters of Support should be sent by June 22, 2016.

Where to send your Letter of Support?

Below is a link to the City of Mississauga with email addresses to Mayor Crombie and Members of Council. Send an email with your letter to Mayor Crombie and your local Ward Councillor or all of Council indicating your desire that the City of Mississauga support the Small Arms Building as a Creative Hub for the citizens and visitors of Mississauga.

City of Mississauga – Mayor and Council

Please share this information with other organizations and/or individuals who may be interested in this project.

Your voice enables the collective WE to build a strong cultural creative fabric in the City of Mississauga.

On behalf of the Small Arms Society Board of Directors, thank you for your continued support. We look forward to hearing from you.

Sincerely,

Diane LaPointe-Kay
President, Small Arms Society
416 898-3817

[End of text]

Template for letter of support

The above-noted message from Diane LaPoint-Kay includes the following template for a letter of support:

June xx, 2016  [sent via email]
Mayor and Member of Council
City of Mississauga
300 City Centre Drive
Mississauga, ON
L5C 3C1

Dear Mayor and Members of Council

RE: Support for the Small Arms Building – Creative Hub – 1352 Lakeshore Road East, Mississauga

The Small Arms Inspection Building was built back in 1940 to support the allied war efforts in World War II. Its rich story of our war efforts, economic growth and the women’s movement are cornerstones to Mississauga’s past. Today the building stands before us, 43,000 sf of space ready to be reclaimed once again; reinvented as a Creative Hub. A place in our city for people to be creative, engage and collaborate. A place where we celebrate our history, and contribute to the ongoing revitalization of the Lakeview Community and waterfront redevelopment through culture, the arts, heritage, science and environmental endeavours.

We (the name of your organization) are pleased to support the Small Arms Society and the Toronto and Region Conservation Authority’s request for City of Mississauga financial support and resources in the rehabilitation of this significant designated heritage building.

The Small Arms Building’s rich history, period architecture and south east gateway location to Mississauga’s waterfront will provide Mississauga residents and visitors of all ages with an outstanding venue to pursue a variety of events, programs, learning, research and creative pursuits.

We fully support this project and look forward to working with the Small Arms Society and other community partners to realize the dream of developing Mississauga’s first Creative Hub.

Sincerely,

(signature)

title

name of organization

[End of text]

Comment

I have been following the work of the Small Arms Society for many years. The following post highlights the tremendous range of experience, talents, and skills that the Board of Directors and members of the Small Arms Society bring to their volunteer work directed at the repurposing of the Small Arms Building, which is located at Lakeshore Road East at the foot of Dixie Road in Mississauga, about a kilometre to the west of the Long Branch GO station.

New Board of Directors at Small Arms Society features skills in archival research, event planning, cultural planning, marketing, and project management

Click on the photos to enlarge them; click again to enlarge them further