Convent Anchor Tenant Announcement: The Coast 89.7 FM
SYDNEY, N.S. – New Dawn Enterprises is excited to make the last of our ‘anchor tenant’ announcements by welcoming The Coast 89.7 to the Convent.
The Coast 89.7 (CKOA-FM) is a community-owned, not-for-profit radio station dedicated to promoting Cape Breton & East Coast music and culture. Since launching in 2007, the station has been steadily growing its listenership.
“It’s all about service for us,” says Bill MacNeil, General Manager and Music Director. “We started this station to promote Cape Breton Island culture, history, tourism, and the artistic aspects of our community and the region. With this move, our connection to the Island’s culture and artistic communities will be even stronger.”
The move coincides with The Coast having outgrown its current office space, with a staff of 13, and with the hope of adding even more. “We’re incredibly grateful to the Glace Bay YMCA Enterprise Centre, the Savoy Theatre, and the Glace Bay community itself for hosting our Reserve Street office and studio location,” says MacNeil. “And we’re excited for this next phase in The Coast’s development.”
The Coast will occupy a state-of-the-art, purpose-built space on The Convent’s ground floor. For The Convent, having a radio station broadcasting from the building is an exciting way to share the stories of The Convent’s artists and arts organizations with local listeners — as well as those listening to the Coast online throughout Canada and around the world.
“An Arts & Culture Centre with a radio station? We believe it’s unique,” says MacNeil. “We’re excited to see the kinds of interesting collaborations that will unfold once you have all these creative people occupying the same workspace on a daily basis. You can’t predict the kind of magic that might create. And we can’t wait to put it on the radio!”
The Coast joins fellow anchor tenants NSCC, whose new two-year Music Arts Diploma will launch in The Convent in September 2020; the Celtic Colours International Festival; Nova Stream media productions and Corey Katz Photography; the Lumière Arts Festival Association; the Cape Breton Music Industry Cooperative (CBMIC); and the Better Bite Community Kitchen and New Dawn Meals on Wheels. In addition to these anchor tenants, The Convent is also newly home to 21 private artist studios hosting creative entrepreneurs working in a variety of media including visual arts, music, and film, and 22 artists spaces within the 4th-floor Open Studio.
MacNeil imagines a revolving door of established and up-and-coming East Coast musicians visiting the Convent through both existing connections with Celtic Colours and new opportunities through the NSCC Music Arts program, among others. “And we have the opportunity to broadcast some of those interactions live,” MacNeil muses.
MacNeil also foresees the opportunity to connect students and other tenants of the Convent with The Coast’s “East Coast After Dark” program which plays new music and promotes emerging artists. “Maybe there are opportunities for young people interested in radio. It opens up a whole new world for us. It’s win-win-win — for us, the Convent, and for our listeners.”
New Dawn Enterprises purchased the former Holy Angels Convent and High School from the Sisters of The Congregation of Notre Dame in 2013, following its closure in 2011. Extensive community consultation led to a new vision for the property and in 2017 — with funding from Nova Scotia Communities, Culture, and Heritage; the Government of Canada; and most recently the Invest Nova Scotia Fund — renovations began. The Convent, Canada’s newest Arts & Culture Centre, will open to the public in Spring 2020.
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For for information, please contact:
Mike Targett
Manager, Marketing and Communications, New Dawn Enterprises
mtargett@newdawn.ca
(902) 539-9560