Unpaid rent for Fashion History Museum in Hespeler Village forces closure

The Fashion History Museum in Cambridge will be closing after racking up some unpaid rent. It’s to the tune of about $140,000, which the City of Cambridge said would transfer over to taxpayers, forcing the decision to terminate the lease for the building.

The Fashion History Museum operates out of the main floor with the museum curators living on the second floor in an apartment. The city said it originally agreed to pay for the space in the lease agreement. The city also said, in a press release, it is not in a position to provide an apartment suite to the museum and staff to live in “rent free.”

Negotiations have been ongoing since 2023, with the city giving the museum multiple methods to repay the accrued amount, including reduced rent payments and a repayment plan.

“The City acknowledges the contributions that arts and culture organizations make to our community but feel it would be unjust to continue to accumulate arrears and undue expenses to the community,” the release said.

The city mentioned that it plans to continue investing into arts and culture but because demand for space is high, and the funding process is competitive, the city chose to terminate the lease.

Staff are now looking into how best to use the space at 74 Queen St. E. in Hespeler Village.