The Province is supporting Victoria's bid for the 2014 Juno Awards with a $50,000 grant, announced the Honourable Ida Chong, Minister of Community, Sport and Cultural Development.

The Province has provided the Capital Region Music Awards Society with the funding in support of its bid, which would see the event held at the Save-On Foods Memorial Centre. The deadline for bid submissions to the Canadian Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences (CARAS) was April 30.

The Province has also pledged to provide up to an additional $1.5 million toward the event, should Victoria's bid to host the Junos be successful. This pledge has been made with the understanding that local governments and other partners will provide at least $500,000 toward hosting the event and that the host society will complete its due diligence.

The Juno Awards were established in 1970. They recognize Canadian music artists and are operated by CARAS. The 2012 Juno Awards were held in Ottawa, while the 2013 awards will be held in Regina.

The last time the event was held in British Columbia was in 2009 in Vancouver.

As part of hosting the Juno Awards, cities typically host a "Juno Week" featuring events such as concerts, sports, and street performances.

Quotes:

Ida Chong, Minister of Community, Sport and Cultural Development -

"Victoria would be a wonderful host city for the Juno Awards with an excellent venue, a passionate audience, and the mildest spring weather in Canada. I'm very confident that the Capital Region Music Awards Society has put together a first-rate bid."

"When it comes to hosting events, B.C. has a successful track record, and we would love to build on that with the 2014 Juno Awards."

Eric Charman, bid committee member -

"Victoria doesn't demonstrate its capabilities often enough as far as hosting such events goes. The importance to the Capital Region is not only the very strong economic impact that would be generated, but the fact is we are culturally rich - far more so than many other areas of Canada. This will give us a wonderful opportunity to demonstrate that."

Learn More:

Capital Region Music Awards Society: http://www.capitalregionmusicawards.com/

Juno Awards: http://junoawards.ca/

Canadian Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences: http://carasonline.ca/

Contact:

Jeff Rud
Communications Director
Ministry of Community, Sport and Cultural Development
250 953-3677
250 208-4028