A draft of the cultural plan should be on the Town's website by the end of July, with recommendations put in front of council in the fall, according to Loughheed.

"We would like to take this forward to council early in the fall so that whatever does emerge out of this process, we can be able to start to incorporate those items in the budget planning for 2009," she said.

Various members of the arts community, such as Don Pangman, board chair of Oakville Symphony Orchestra, feel passionately about the cultural plan. He said that people involved in arts and culture aren't generally vocal advocates, adding that now is the chance to be heard.

"This is probably the first opportunity we've ever had for the Town to hear we have these deficiencies, that our programs are not being supported well enough and we have a huge shortage of facilities," Pangman said. "The town is serious about moving forward, but it needs input from people in the community who may have thought previously that they didn't have a voice."

Pangman said he is anxiously anticipating the official announcement of the final cultural plan. He said that the contribution of arts and culture to a community is invaluable and should be made a priority by the Town. Among his many suggestions, he said he would like to see a number of cultural centres built throughout Oakville.

"You need a facility that would work for everybody, with a performance hall, rehearsal studio, high-end acoustics so that people could perform there and present a fine concert, display rooms and teaching rooms," Pangman said. "These facilities should be built across Oakville."

Another element Pangman said he hopes for from the cultural plan is a new performing arts centre. He said that members of the Oakville Symphony Orchestra cannot hear each other in what he calls the acoustically-dead hall at Oakville Centre for the Performing Arts. Another problem is that they cannot rehearse on the main stage of that hall due to high rental costs.

He said the Town should build a similar theatre to Brampton's new Rose Theatre, which is a $52-million, 880-seat venue that opened in fall 2006. He added that this new hall should be accessible to community arts groups.

"We need a new performing arts theatre that could rival the Rose Theatre," Pangman said.

Parity is also a key message Pangman wants to send to the Town. Currently, the Town spends several million dollars more on items classified as recreation compared to cultural items in its annual budget.

"I believe that there is an equal importance of both recreation and culture, and that should be reflected in the Town's budget," he said.

One or more multi-purpose arts centres are also on the wish list of a group called CommUnity Arts Space, according to Britta Martini-Miles, executive director. The non-profit contingent of local arts and culture groups has already raised about $160,000 towards an arts centre, which they hope will be centrally located.

"I was critical at first of the $70,000 cost (of the cultural plan), which is a huge amount of money, but I have become convinced of the professionalism of the approach, the incredible commitment, particularly from Claire Loughheed, and I believe that we will get outcomes that will affect future planning," said Martini-Miles. "That is why I think it is crucial that all of Oakville come forward now and give evidence that there are people that are concerned about this."

Martini-Miles said she does not expect brand new venues. She said there are many older buildings that could be renovated into arts facilities.

"A possibility would be to recycle one of the schools that are being closed, like one of the two that might be closed in southeast Oakville, like Brantwood and New Central," she said. "Those would be very good buildings to adapt for community use because they have small classrooms and there is a large room like a gym that could be used for community concerts."

Francine Périnet, director of Oakville Galleries, said that she applauds the Town for embarking on the study and is appreciative of all it has already done for the local cultural scene.

"There's been a long tradition of supporting the arts and I have to commend the Town of Oakville for having supported the arts for a long time," Périnet said. "Oakville Galleries is 25 years old and has benefited from the support of the Town through all those years. I'm not saying we have enough, but there has been a tradition and it needs to grow."

For information on the cultural plan or RSVP for a public meeting, call 905-845-6601, ext. 3758, e-mail culturalplan@oakville.ca or go online to www.oakville.ca/cultureliveshere.htm.