Place Des Arts on track despite delays, group says

Shovels willsoon be in the ground at a parking lot on the corner of Larch and Elgin Streets, the future site of La Place des Arts in downtown Sudbury.

The group leading the way on the publicly funded francophone arts centre says the $30 million dollar project is on track.

Martin Lajeunesse, the group's secretary-treasurer, told CBC News that they are "on the cusp" of getting underway.

"We're waiting for a building permit, basically," Lajeunesse said. "Once that building permit is issued, we will have a contractor on site getting the site preparation underway as early as September.".

"The issue is not of discretion but of having our contractor on site as soon as possible to really get in as much work as possible before the snow flies this year," he added.

The project is expected to take approximately 20 months, with the group eyeing the spring of 2020 as the centre's opening.

City staff will be at the future site of La Place des Arts Saturday afternoon to answer questions and give the public a chance to view the floor plans for the project.