Kids in the West Park neighbourhood could have a dedicated outdoor rink on which to play this winter, once a cement pad and lighting are installed as part of a recreation enhancement project.
The West Park Community Association and the parks and recreation department have worked together for more than a year to upgrade the recreational amenities in that area. Council approved the proposed capital project upgrades in March, with all enhancements expected to cost $372,700.
The association recently asked the parks department about proceeding with the installation of a concrete sports pad and lighting so it could install an outdoor rink this winter, Derek Blais, director of parks and recreation, told city council during its recent regular meeting.
This particular project is expected to cost $70,000, including $50,000 for the concrete court pad, $15,000 for the lighting and $5,000 for the winter water connection.
The remaining projects consist of a new spray park, playground upgrades, irrigation upgrades and an outdoor pavilion; all of these have been deferred to 2021.
The community association will provide $20,000 from its fundraising initiatives for the concrete pad, while the Kinsmen Club will provide $10,000 as the first part of its 10-year, $100,000-naming rights payment, Blais said. The remaining $40,000 will come from capital projects that have been deferred this year.
“This is a very worthy project,” Coun. Crystal Froese said. “They want to get things moving. They are thinking that they will spend a fair bit more time outside this winter and that’s for all the right reasons.”
With other outdoor rinks, the water is poured on the ground to make the ice sheet, observed Coun. Brian Swanson. He wondered whether the community association needed a concrete base on which to create the rink.
The parks department discussed that option with the association, but association members decided a pad would give them a head start building the basketball court next year and would be a better option for flooding the rink, said Blais. The municipality initially designed that site as a soccer pitch, and the department would have to analyze the slope, so the best option is to install the concrete pad.
Council then voted in favour of allowing the $70,000 project to proceed this fall.
The next regular council meeting is Monday, Oct. 5.
