The Legault government continues to lower expectations about Blue Spaces. He does not know when the establishment of the museum network in the 17 regions of Quebec will be completed and how much the bill will be. The Minister of Culture, Mathieu Lacombe, has not even been able to confirm that other projects will be launched by the end of his mandate, preferring to concentrate for the time being on the four Blue Spaces which have already been announced.
“Estimating at this time what the bill might look like, when the deployment will be done over many years, it can be risky. We can lend ourselves to the exercise, but the margin of error is likely to be significant, “said Minister Lacombe during the study of budgetary appropriations in the National Assembly, where he was pressed with questions on this subject. by the opposition.
Announced with great fanfare in 2021 by the CAQ government, the Blue Spaces project has raised several fears in the museum community from the start. Many see it as pointless competition with existing regional museums.
The Blue Spaces, which are supposed to occupy heritage buildings throughout Quebec, have the mission of promoting Quebec pride by highlighting important figures in history or popular culture. In two years, four Blue Spaces have been confirmed: those of Quebec, Baie-Saint-Paul, Amos and Percé. None has yet opened its doors, but already, there is talk of significant cost overruns.
According to daily revelations The sun released last December, the preliminary bill for the four announced projects soared to $153 million. This is more than half of the envelope of 259 million that has been granted for the moment to the Ministry of Culture and the Musée de la civilization for the establishment of the network throughout the province. “Certainly we will need more to achieve the deployment of Blue Spaces in all regions,” admitted the Minister, without however deciding on a total sum or a timetable.
Where will the next ones be?
In interview at Duty last February, Mathieu Lacombe had already made it known that it was unthinkable that projects would be launched in the 17 regions by the next elections, in 2026.
In a parliamentary committee on Tuesday, the minister nevertheless mentioned that discussions were currently underway for the establishment of Blue Spaces in other regions, citing Saguenay–Lac-Saint-Jean, Estrie and Montreal. “The envelope that has been granted to us is more than enough to complete the four projects that have been announced, and possibly to announce others,” he slipped, without always committing to it by now. the end of his term.
However, according to our information, players in the museum community in the region feel that the establishment of the Espaces Bleus network is no longer a priority for the Ministry of Culture. Some projects that were discussed last year have reportedly stalled since the elections. “It’s been a while since we feel that the ministry has slowed down,” we whisper.
The first Espace bleu is to be inaugurated in the Camille-Roy pavilion of the Séminaire de Québec. No opening date has been confirmed at this time.