City administration is frustrated with the provincial government’s inconsistent messaging around its latest pandemic restrictions, especially with measures that affect on-ice activities.
The province announced on Nov. 25 that all team sports activities are cancelled, including recreational and amateur hockey leagues for all age groups. Athletes under age 18 may continue practising or conditioning skills in groups of eight or fewer while wearing face masks and practising physical distancing.
City hall officials discussed the province’s poor consultation efforts on Nov. 26 after the first 2021 budget deliberation meeting finished.
“There’s lots of impacts when team sports are impacted, and we’ve been scrambling — not like crazy, but very efficiently to get in contact with our user groups and determine the impacts,” said city manager Jim Puffalt. “The biggest impact for us is team sports has been postponed for three weeks.”
Some good news, though, is Moose Jaw Minor Hockey has said it will continue with eight people on the ice, he continued. City administration is unsure how much space or ice time will be required, so it’s waiting to see what plan the hockey organization puts together.
City administration has also spoken several times with Mosaic Place about arena usage across the community. Once the municipality better understands how much ice will be needed, it will inform residents. Puffalt didn’t think there would be enough ice rental time to keep open all four arenas in the short-term.
Another issue that frustrates city hall is conflicting information about swimming pools. The limit was reduced to 30 people, which Puffalt indicated made keeping the building open difficult since “the costs were going to be extreme.” However, city hall later learned that number might increase back to 100 people.
Puffalt commended Derek Blais, director of the parks and recreation department, and his team for keeping the pool open with the 30-person limit.
Swimming lessons have been tentatively postponed, but there is conflicting information about that as well, said Blais. However, city hall should receive answers soon about whether those can continue.
Meanwhile, city administration is waiting to hear from groups that use YaraCentre and their plans to continue. That building provides more flexibility — especially with 30 people — since there is plenty of space and a walking track.
City council and city administration do support the province’s announcements, but it “does make it extremely difficult” without advance notice about certain restrictions, said Puffalt.
“We know it’s difficult on everybody, and certainly we ask for the province to give us a little bit more heads-up if possible so that we can work our way through this,” he added. “Scrambling to make decisions is not always the best answer.”
Having only eight youths on the ice could affect user groups’ bottom line, said Coun. Heather Eby. She wondered if they would have to pay more for ice time with reduced numbers.
It will cost the municipality just as much to keep the arenas open for those groups, said Puffalt. City hall can’t afford to offer a price discount since minor sports are already heavily subsidized. It must cover its costs somehow, especially if groups plan to practise.
Minor hockey uses 84 hours of ice time a week, so if they can’t use that, then city hall wouldn’t charge them and could temporarily close down one of the arenas, he continued.
“It’s six of one and half-dozen of another,” Puffalt remarked, adding there are still electrical costs and maintenance of ice plants. Therefore, it doesn’t make sense to shut down the ice for three weeks and then reinstall the sheets again.
Puffalt added that everyone should continue to follow pandemic measures.
