FAQs

Junction East will be an approximately 92,700 square foot building in Greater Sudbury’s historic downtown, expected to open in 2024. It will include:

• The Greater Sudbury Central Library
• The Art Gallery of Sudbury
• And potential future partners (Sudbury Theatre Centre and Sudbury Multicultural and Folk Arts Association.

These institutions will share space in one building but continue to have distinct identities with separate missions, governance, staffing structures and sources of operating revenues.

Junction East will provide vital public space for people to gather and connect, to learn and share ideas, and to inspire creativity. It will be located on Shaughnessy Street in Downtown Sudbury (the parking lot beside the Sudbury Theatre Centre), the preferred site selected by Council in May 2019.

The Central Library, in many ways, is the heart of our library system. It not only contains the downtown branch - which offers a collection of library materials, services and programming like all other library branches - it is also the home of special collections like the local history and reference collections, and provides additional services such as reference services and access to the Makerspace. Behind the scenes, central library staff work hard connecting you with the library services you know and love – like homebound, inter-library loans and programming, to name just a few!

The Central Library is also, where new items are catalogued, processed and distributed to all 13 branches. This includes all the new books, CDs, DVDs, Blu-rays, audiobooks, magazines and video games plus 3D objects like snowshoes, board games, puzzles and more that are available on library shelves. Librarians and other staff who provide services, supplies, training and support for the whole library system also work out of the Central Library.

The current building at 74 Mackenzie Street, constructed in 1952, is too small to serve the community of Greater Sudbury. It has many structural, HVAC and layout problems, as well as insufficient meeting room and programming spaces. A new library building will be sustainable and efficient, reducing maintenance costs now and into the future.

There have been calls for a new Central Library since 1992 when Sudbury’s population was under 100,000 and the central library served a system of only five branches. Now, almost 30 years later, the central library serves 13 branches and a population of over 160,000. The Central Library performs many services for the whole system including homebound, reference, programming and inter-library loans, processing new books, and other services that benefit the 

The current location of the Art Gallery of Sudbury (AGS) has many problems including cramped space and poor conditions for storage or display of the Gallery’s permanent collection. The Art Gallery is currently unable to host significant travelling exhibitions since it is too small and has an inadequate shipping-receiving dock. A new location for the Art Gallery of Sudbury (AGS) will provide universal accessibility for all visitors, more efficient display space, safer conditions for artwork in terms of heating and HVAC systems, plus exciting co-programming opportunities with the Library.

Recently, the family of famed Group of Seven artist Franklin Carmichael offered to donate more than 30 works of art valued at $3.5 million to the AGS once it has a new facility. Without a new location, this valuable collection would be lost to Sudbury.

A larger more prominent location in downtown Sudbury combined with the existing renowned collection will make the Art Gallery of Sudbury a vital tourism draw and an investment in our community.

Providing access to Greater Sudbury’s important collection of archival materials and regional art including works by Indigenous Peoples, Francophone, Anglophone and Newcomer artists will foster a climate of lifelong learning and creativity.  This will enrich the lives of citizens and provide opportunities that contribute to the quality of life for all people in Greater Sudbury.

Locating the Central Library and Art Gallery together will create a new destination landmark, will save money in both the short and long term, and will ensure that both organizations get the long-overdue new spaces they need. More people, both residents and visitors, will be able to access the new location, and there will be opportunities for crossover programs that will benefit the whole community.

The City and WZMH Architects, together with the Collaboration Working Group, have been working closely with the Sudbury Theatre Centre (STC) and Sudbury Multicultural and Folk Arts Association (SMFAA) to discuss their potential integration into the project. 

While it is likely that STC and SMFAA will be partners in Junction East, that is not yet confirmed. Options are being finalized now.

Just as it was vital for the City to understand the needs of the Library and the Art Gallery when developing the business plan, it is important to understand the needs of STC and SMFAA, its impacts and opportunities, shared spaces and synergies. These are important understandings, for both these potential new partners and Council in an effort to determine an agreement that works for all parties involved.

Greater Sudbury serves as the capital of northeastern Ontario - functioning as the regional hub for business, retail, healthcare and education.  

Our city is home to a growing base of arts and culture businesses and employment, in a diverse range of arts and culture industry sub-sectors. This business base has grown by over 30% over the last six years, and employs an estimated 4,500 people in Greater Sudbury.

Junction East will develop environments that reflect the cultural richness and heritage of Greater Sudbury by creating a shared cultural facility that maximizes synergies and incubates creative initiatives. It will also result in new investment, generating economic development and increased assessment.  

As a civic landmark and architectural showcase, Junction East will help reinforce Greater Sudbury’s role as a regional capital, foster the growth of new creative enterprises and attract a knowledge-based workforce and investment to the community.

The City of Greater Sudbury is committed to providing quality municipal services and leadership in the social, environmental and economic development of Greater Sudbury.  

There is overwhelming proof that arts, culture and heritage provide value to communities in the forms of quality of life, downtown revitalization and economic development, sense of community, attraction and retention of creative professionals and tourism.  

Our community is multicultural and has a unique relationship with its geographical landscape.  Cultural resources help define the identities of individual communities as well as the shared identity of Greater Sudbury as a whole.  

We are a community of communities, and our creative individuals are at the heart of the creative economy. It is with this in mind that we must continue to cultivate an environment for artistic and cultural pursuits.

A diverse cultural sector breathes life into our entire community through a range of programs and events, which showcase the immense talent of local artists who draw inspiration from the land and the rich multicultural heritage of the region. 

Junction East will create a cultural hub in the City’s downtown, spurring significant growth in the arts and culture district – an important catalyst for creativity, ideas and imagination.

Quality of place is a powerful driver in attracting and retaining talent in the global economy. Creativity and culture influence the economy in many ways, from directly employing people to being a component of almost any employment sector. 

There has been increasing recognition of the powerful role creativity and culture play in economic restructuring and generating wealth in our community. Arts, culture and heritage are a critical enabler for economic development, and quality of place is a powerful driver in attracting and retaining talent in the global economy. 

The attributes of a community are an important consideration in attracting and retaining both businesses and highly skilled talent.  The quality of a downtown, the quality and availability of housing stock, access to recreation and cultural amenities, and community and retail services all factor into decision making.  

Downtowns are important. They are the historic and symbolic heart of the community, and the reflection of a city's image, pride and prosperity.  They are the meeting place for the entire city, where all types of different people come together to celebrate and share common experiences.  

A healthy, active, successful downtown makes a positive statement about the prosperity of a city, sending a confident message to future residents, business and investors.  

As an anchor in the downtown, Junction East will be an important first impression and welcome site for those entering the City of Greater Sudbury. Its strategic location in Greater Sudbury’s downtown will make it a significant attraction both as part of the City’s Downtown Master Plan and revitalization efforts of the entire city.  

Downtown Greater Sudbury is the crossroads where business and creativity meet.  Junction East’s location downtown will make it a hub for creative expression and entrepreneurial thinking.  

Junction East will be the leading provider of space that can support and harness the creativity and imagination that leads to cutting-edge innovation. The business community will magnify this innovation, as new sectors emerge and new businesses are created

Investing in Junction East and new destination attractions, confirms Greater Sudbury’s position as the leading events, arts and cultural destination for northeastern Ontario.  

Junction East will provide a new, flexible and high quality tourism product to attract many more visitors to the City. This will greatly enhance the diversity of the City, boosting the regional tourism experience and enriching the cultural economy. It will increase the flow of new money into the community by increasing tourism visitation and related spending.  

Overnight visitors will increase the demand for accommodations. Along with an increased number of overnight stays, comes increased visitation - not only to downtown restaurants and shopping, but also to other significant attractions in our community like Science North and Dynamic Earth.   

Furthermore, for Greater Sudbury, the Visiting Friends and Relatives (VFR) tourism market is extremely important, accounting for about 47% of all visitors. The VFR market is of particular importance because visitors are influenced and accompanied by residents to art galleries, public libraries and other community spaces and events.

TripAdvisor data in Halifax, Nova Scotia ranks its new Central Library as the second most popular place to visit in the City, confirming that a great library can be a tourist destination.

Council understands the demands for parking in the downtown and is considering options that include the South District where Junction East will be located.  We will share information as it becomes available.

Safety and security will be considered in the building design by taking a Crime Prevention Through Environmental Design (CPTED—pronounced “SEP-ted”) approach, which reduces crime while still being inclusionary. In addition, library staff are developing a new Patron Code of Conduct that will respond to the current needs of staff and the community.

Arts, culture and heritage provide value to communities by improving quality of life, revitalizing downtowns, inspiring a sense of community, attracting and retaining creative professionals, and sparking economic development and tourism. By fostering an environment that supports cultural pursuits and creative individuals, all of Greater Sudbury will benefit.

Libraries function as an important social service and art galleries house significant art, cultural and historic works for communities.

A new shared facility is expected to create a cultural hub in the downtown, while contributing to the arts and culture district of Greater Sudbury.  Both the library and the art gallery would have more space to better serve the community as a resource to information, a catalyst for ideas and imagination and an engine of cultural and economic benefit.  

Providing access to Greater Sudbury’s important collection of archival materials and regional art including works by Indigenous Peoples, Francophone and Anglophone artists will foster a climate of lifelong learning and creativity.  This will enrich the lives of citizens and provide opportunities that contribute to the quality of life for all people in Greater Sudbury.