It started close to a decade ago but on September 20, 2024 the Canadore Sportsplex athletic dome was officially opened to the public.
The 85,000-square-foot dome located behind the Canadore College Commerce Court Campus near Pete Palangio Arena in North Bay will be more than just a Canadore College sports facility.
"Our academic programming will be in here, our varsity club programming will be in here, but so will the community. So anytime that's going to be available, the community is going to be able to rent space to use as they wish," said Graham Loyst, Supervisor, Sports Facility. Sport and Wellness Department at Canadore College.
Loyst says sports organizations have been banging on their door to find out how to book the facility. It will accommodate various sports, including soccer, volleyball, baseball, and ultimate Frisbee. It will feature amenities like pickleball courts, soccer fields, and a high-performance area.
"At the end of the day, it's pretty much a big jigsaw puzzle," explained Loyst about the $9 million facility.
"You're putting together the pieces of trying to fit groups in where, where we can make it work, and where they can make it work and try to get people working together. And so that's probably after today, that's going to be the bulk of my time."
See related: New Canadore athletic facility gets its dome
The initial announcement for the new dome was made in June 2022.
However, George Burton, president and CEO at Canadore College, says work started on this concept nearly a decade ago.
"I'm just beaming. I'm just so darn happy. I can't put into words. I'm almost speechless," Burton said.
"But I'm just so happy for the staff and that for the community.
"It's been a journey. It's been a while, and we're happy that it's open today, finally. But you can't think about the effort required to make things happen, because if you did, wouldn't start, you know," he continued.
"So I'm just happy for the staff who continually pushed this project. It's their project. They were the ones that say, 'Hey, let's do this.' I said, 'Sure.' And then we started and here we are."
Burton also noted the new facility will put them on a level playing field with other Ontario colleges and will line them up to possibly expanding to offer soccer and baseball teams at the OCAA level.
Family Sports Legacy
For Loyst, the opportunity to manage a sports facility makes him proud. His father John Loyst was recently inducted into the North Bay Sports Hall of Fame in 2023 and has been well known in North Bay for his impact on local sports such as hockey.
:A lot of stuff I do is because of him, my parents, it makes me emotional thinking about it, but it's, it's something I've been exposed to my whole life, and in my biased opinion, they've showed me the right way to go about, about doing these things," said the younger Loyst candidly.
"And, you know, being involved giving back to the community, something that was ingrained in my sister and I from a very young age. You don't always want to mix business with pleasure. But for me, this, this type of job, is a dream come true. It truly is. You know, I'm sure he's proud today.
