I’m sure this week we’re going to hear more about the apparent demise of a new downtown Royal Alberta Museum. The announcement that the Feds were not going to pony up their share of the dollars needed to build it was very bad news indeed.

Museums are a critical part of every great city. Our current museum is too small to exhibit more than a fraction of its collection. That means Albertans are deprived of the opportunity to experience much of the province’s history. In addition, the heating and ventilation system at the current museum is not up to the standards demanded of major travelling exhibitions.

The museum is also in the wrong place. It’s certainly in a nice location, but it’s hardly central and there are no other attractions in the immediate area, much less easily accessible restaurants.

Cities work best when there are several entertainment venues clustered close to one another. The new museum would be close to the Art Gallery of Alberta, the Citadel, the Winspear and the proposed downtown arena, as well as any number of shops and restaurants.

Mom, dad and the kiddos could certainly make an interesting day out of visiting a museum in the downtown. Tourists too might find themselves with lots of things to see and do. We need more attractions in the city centre if we are ever going to rid ourselves of the dreaded Deadmonton moniker.

Despite all the finger pointing and the federal government’s assertion that it never promised the money the province says it did, I have to come down on the side of the provincial government.

I find it very difficult to believe the province would announce it was going to build a new museum and create a design competition if it did not think it had a deal in hand. Though you may find it difficult to believe, these sorts of things often proceed on the basis of a verbal agreement even when it involves millions of dollars. The dollars are promised and then much later the papers are drawn up.

I have to wonder if Stephen Harper’s crew thinks that Alberta seats are so safe it has no problem whatsoever yet again asking Edmontonians once again to bend over and take it with a smile. One can only hope that the Alberta caucus makes its voice heard and that causes the Feds to rethink their position.