A local group that had been organizing for the possible purchase of the Vogue Cinema in downtown Sackville is now working with the new owner of the beloved cinema. Thaddeus Holownia of the Tantramar Cultural Collective says the group has met a couple of times with John Ernst, one of the new owners of the 78-year-old cinema.
“John is very keen to see the Vogue remain as a theatre and as a cultural space,” says Holownia. “And so now we’re in discussions to see how we can arrive at helping him make that happen.”
The Vogue closed down in May 2023, after previous owner Jeff Coates had been plagued by debts, including back taxes owed to the province, a lien on the property filed by the Canada Revenue Agency, and an outstanding loan to CBDC Westmorland Albert. The Tantramar Cultural Collective former shortly thereafter with a goal of re-opening the Vogue as a cultural space.
The property was due to go up for tax sale by the province in January 2025, but on October 17, real estate investment partners John Ernst and Tyler Gay closed a deal on the building for $110,000.
Ernst and Gay own a number of properties in Sackville, including the former Mel’s Tea Room building and the Wood Block across the street, which is home to the former Imperial Theatre and Sackville Music Hall. Ernst is the son of Evelyn and David Ernst, who own Terra Beata cranberries and co-own Atlantic Autocold, also known as ‘the Cube’.
CHMA has reached out to Ernst to find out about the plans for the Vogue, and have yet to hear back.
Holownia says the extent of what may happen at the Vogue is “very abstract at the moment,” but he says the collective will continue to work towards making “the Vogue into a cultural venue that many people can use.” Top of mind for Holownia is bringing the Sackville Film Society back to Sackville. The weekly alternative film series has been showing at the Amherst Theatre since the fall of 2023.
“We can only hope that the interior of the Vogue is fixed up to the standards that we need it to be at,” says Holownia, “because it’s been abandoned for a couple of years now, and that’s not good for a building.”
“And then we have to think about what we need to carry on presenting things,” says Holownia, be it films or sound events. But overall, the former Mount Allison head of fine arts says that he is optimistic. “I always feel positive things are moving forward,” says Holownia.
