Calgary, Alberta — James S. Kinnear and the Friends of Pengrowth have pledged $10 million to The Banff Centre, to be used for the construction of the new Kinnear Centre for Creativity and Innovation. The Kinnear Centre will be the second facility to be constructed as part of The Banff Centre Revitalization project. Construction will begin later this year.

“The Banff Centre is an influential, inspiring, and innovative institution,” says Kinnear, president and CEO of Pengrowth Corporation. “I’m honoured to provide my personal support to build the new centre and contribute to the future of leadership and creativity in Alberta.”

Scheduled to open in 2009, the Kinnear Centre for Creativity and Innovation will become the physical and intellectual core of The Banff Centre campus. It will feature over 21,000 square feet of classroom, performance, meeting, and learning spaces. It will be the new home for the Centre’s Paul D. Fleck Library & Archives, integrating the expertise and resources of the Centre’s current library with advanced technologies and showcasing the work of Banff Centre artists. The new facility will also include a galleria, an internet café and pub, and balconies and patios overlooking a new outdoor performance amphitheatre and the surrounding mountains. The Centre will seek LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) certification for the facility.

“James Kinnear’s personal donation is the largest individual gift ever received by The Banff Centre. This legacy gift that will enable the Centre to continue to support Canada’s most exceptional artists, creators, and leaders,” says Mary Hofstetter, Banff Centre president and CEO. “Through the construction of the Kinnear Centre, we will continue to advance our vision for the future: supporting creative connections, interdisciplinary learning, and inspired leadership.”

The Kinnear Centre will be designed by one of Canada’s leading architectural firms, Diamond and Schmitt Architects. Recipients of six Governor General’s awards for architecture, their major design projects include the Four Seasons Centre for the Performing Arts in Toronto, the Israeli Foreign Ministry in Jerusalem, and the Max M. Fisher Music Centre in Detroit.

Founded in 1933, The Banff Centre is a globally respected arts, cultural, and educational institution, located in Banff, Alberta. For more information on The Banff Centre, please visit www.banffcentre.ca. For more information on the Banff Centre Revitalization project, see www.banffcentre.ca/about/revitalization. A downloadable conceptual drawing of the Kinnear Centre is available at: www.banffcentre.ca/media_room/images/general/

— 30 —

Media Contacts:

Debra Hornsby
Director of Communications
The Banff Centre
Phone: 403-762-6333
Email: debra_hornsby@banffcentre.ca

Amy Tillotson
NATIONAL Public Relations
Phone: 403-531-0331
Cell: 403-830-4432
Email: atillotson@national.ca