Uncertainty over the restaurant in Victoria Park is one step closer to an end.
The City of Kitchener announced Monday than Bill MacTavish, owner of the Imbibe restaurant in downtown Kitchener, has been approved as the new operator of the Boathouse.
“With Bill’s experience in the industry, we are confident that the Boathouse will be a lively hub for our growing music sector and culinary cluster,” Rod Regier, Kitchener’s director of economic development, said in a news release.
The Boathouse was previously operated by Kevin Doyle, but the city terminated his lease and changed the building’s locks last September, saying he was behind on rent and utility payments.
Two groups initially bid to take over the facility – one headed by MacTavish and music promoters Cory and Curt Crossman, and one featuring restaurant owner Glenn Smith and musician Danny Michel.
Over the past few months, all interested parties other than MacTavish bowed out of the race.
Renovations will be made to the facility before it is opened to the public, which is expected to happen by summer.
Included in those renovations will be a doubling of the restaurant’s seating capacity, washroom improvements and new lighting and sound systems.
“The biggest challenge right now is making it restaurant-ready,” MacTavish tells CTV News.
“Once we get to build the restaurant and run it as a restaurant and music venue, I’ll be a lot more comfortable.”
MacTavish will spend $168,000 on the renovation, with another $400,000 coming from city coffers.
