North Bay City Council agreed with a staff recommendation and, at its most recent regular meeting, unanimously endorsed the Steve Omischl Sports Complex as the general location of a planned regulation-size cricket pitch.
There are three potential sites on the Omischl property (see graphic above) and, no matter the final choice, it will require some clearing of greenery. A decision on which option will be the facility's home will come.
See related: City pitches its recommended location for new cricket facilities
With its approval, the council also directed staff to initiate preliminary site work, including environmental and geotechnical, and to complete an operations analysis to identify the ideal construction site at the Steve Omischl Sports Complex; and, to direct staff to complete Class C and D cost estimates for consideration during the 2025 capital budget deliberations.
Coun. Justine Mallah, also the chair of the council's community services committee, said before the vote, "I'm pleased — pending approval — the [cricket] pitch will be situated at Omischl, which is a true recreational hub for our city and will only continue to become more of that.
"This cricket facility promises to be a cornerstone for our community, bringing people together through exciting events and matches and fostering a sense of pride for years to come."
Coun. Mark King noted, "There is a tremendous opportunity at Omischl. There's lots of vacant property there and this would fit very nicely with the new, planned community centre.
"I honestly believe there are some synergies available during that construction that might reduce the cost of the [cricket] development."
See also: See: Council learns budget, early design details of new arena project
A report containing the location recommendation from Ian Kilgour, the director of community services, states the next steps include a detailed investigation of each of the three potential Omischl sites, including a detailed topographic survey, geotechnical testing and analysis, environmental approvals, and design.
The report also lists the benefits of proceeding at the sports complex at the south end of Lakeshore Drive: Capital costs will be minimized as the sites are adjacent to existing infrastructure, such as sewer, water, washrooms, parking, irrigation, and lighting. There are multi-use synergies with the planned Community and Recreation Centre (i.e. provisions for indoor tournament administration space, and other tournament amenities). And, there are expected economic impacts on West Ferris commercial establishments, restaurants, gas stations, and motels/hotels.
It is estimated by Cricket Canada the number of players in Canada could reach half a million by the mid-2030s, according to immigration patterns, attaining the status of Canada's fastest-growing sport. According to the U.S. National Institute of Health, approximately 2.5 billion people of all ages and abilities participate.
Deputy Mayor Maggie Horsfield said during the meeting she had recently attended a local cricket tournament and it was clear the size of the field on which the match was held was inadequate. "They have been looking for a suitable location to play ... They lost many of the cricket balls to the forest and I'm sure having the space will be much appreciated."
"The City of North Bay does not currently have a dedicated regulation-sized cricket facility. Currently, cricket is played where a field can be temporarily used for this purpose with a softer non-regulation ball that does not fly as far on the smaller field," wrote Kilgour. "North Bay Cricket Club members have advised that the lack of regulation-sized field prevents the Club from hosting regulation tournaments. The Club has advised that there will be better opportunities to hold tournaments in," North Bay with a regulation pitch.
Coun. Jamie Lowery noted the cricket community in North Bay is the largest in the north and the Panthers, the local club, recently secured a championship.
In anticipation of the meeting, staff had whittled down the options for the planned construction of the new cricket pitch for council approval. The other two locations considered in the site search include one on the grounds of the former psychiatric hospital on Highway 11 north of the city and two sites at the base of College Drive near the Canadore student residences but the three preferred Omischl sites were the favourites.
See: City of North Bay's full cricket pitch site selection scan
The design and construction costs of the new cricket pitch were included in the 2024 capital budget with an overall estimated project cost of $2,510,000. The construction phase of the project is planned for 2026. The City says it is exploring all funding opportunities and identified the provincial Community Sport and Recreation Infrastructure Fund (CSRIF) as a potential match for funding. CSRIF Stream 2 offers funds for a transformative project addressing a recreation programming gap. "The project has the potential to have significant economic spin-offs through increased sports tourism and could attract additional investment as it will broaden the types of offerings of the City’s recreation facilities," per the report.
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During budget deliberations earlier this year, a forecast found in the soon-to-be-approved 2024 capital budget included a line for $140,000 for cricket facility design fees this year with another $2.37 million estimated for construction in 2026.
City staff have been working with local cricket enthusiasts to determine if an existing location could be used or even redeveloped as a new cricket location but the playing surface needed is vast. According to this guide, cricket grounds have an overall diameter ranging from 137–152 metres (450–500 feet) with a total area of up to 18,000 m² or nearly 200,000 ft². The rectangular cricket pitch itself is located at the centre of the grounds and is surrounded by an oval infield with a radius of 27.4 m (90') from the centre of each wicket.
