Come this spring Dauphinites will be able to attend functions in comfort in the Johnston and Company Auditorium at the Watson Arts Centre.

The new name for the WAC auditorium recognizes a $35,000 donation by the local law firm to mark its 100th anniversary. 

The donation includes an initial contribution of $25,000, with the remaining $10,000 to be provided over the next five years and completes the centre’s fund-raising campaign for a new heat pump system.

Watson Arts Centre board chair Cam Bennet said the Dauphin and District Allied Arts Council (DDAAC) is thrilled to partner with community-minded business such as Johnston and Company on the project.

“The naming rights for the auditorium have long been a dream for the DDAAC,” he said.

“We were looking at maybe two or three years of fund-raising to get this done and it really put us over the top in our fund-raising efforts to install heat pump technology in the Johnston and Company Auditorium.”

Jason Beyette said he and his partners at the law firm were looking to make a lasting impact on the community to mark the special anniversary.

“The Watson Arts Centre, with its history of enriching lives throughout the Parkland, perfectly aligns with our values of community service,” Beyette said.

“We had, in our minds, wanted to do something in our 100th anniversary year and we didn’t have anything in mind going into it. Then we considered the promotion there for the cooling system for the Watson Arts Center and we thought it would be nice for us to cement our name with the arts center for a 10-year agreement for the naming rights to the auditorium.”

Founded in 1924, Johnston and Company have provided legal services to the Parkland for more than 100 years. The firm specializes in real estate, wills and estates, and corporate commercial law, while maintaining a strong tradition of community involvement.

“We’ve always been ingrained in our communities and trying to support our communities outside of the practice of law,” Beyette said.

“When I came to the firm, that was always the belief of the partners who were there. We just try to make sure that we’re supportive of the community that helped us grow.”

Johnston and Company’s commitment to community service spans numerous local organizations, Beyette said, including the Dauphin and District Community Foundation, Dauphin Agricultural  Society, Rotary Club of Dauphin, The Northgate Trails, and the Dauphin Co-op board of directors.

Bennet said a request for proposals for the supply and installation of the heat pump has been issued with the hope that the equipment will be cooling the building by this summer.

The equipment ensures the WAC will be open and available for events 12 months of the year.

In the past, the auditorium would become uncomfortably hot in the summer, Bennet said, making it virtually unusable on hotter days.

“I made a point of going down during the street fair this last summer, because it was a really hot day, and I measured the temperature upstairs. It was 32 degrees in the balcony, so that certainly limits what you can do there in the those months,” Bennet said.

“The whole campaign was built around we wanted to lower the temperature 12 degrees so that we can be open 12 months of the year.”

The Johnston and Company Auditorium will continue as a cornerstone of cultural life in the Parkland, Bennet said, hosting theatre productions, concerts, weddings, and community gatherings. The naming will take effect this spring, coinciding with the installation of the new climate control system in June.

A formal naming ceremony will take place at that time.