The fate of the West Ferris arena might be back on the front burner, but a conclusion is certainly still some ways away after the decision to delay the geotechnical studies was made by city council last night.
There was hesitation among councillors last night as the time to vote on the study arrived, but Coun. Daryl Vaillancourt insisted on holding off the vote until September 5, urging there was still more information to be presented to council for consideration.
“I’m supporting of what we’re doing—it’s been a long time coming actually—but we want to make sure to shepherd it through politics so people are aware of what’s happening,” Vaillancourt said. “I have no problem wit the $60,000 for the geotechnical, I just think it’s such a high-profile project with a lot of eyes watching.”
With the options apparently split between building another pad or pads adjacent to Memorial Gardens, a rink at the Steve Omischl Sports Complex, or the existing site, Vaillancourt said he wanted to give council the chance to take what they learned from the Multi-use Recreational Facility (MURF) Feasibility Study completed in 2012, as well as the opportunity for members of the public to inform themselves before the process moves too quickly.
"We have a community within a community with West Ferris and when you bring up the arena they get sensitive on the subject," he said, noting how Ferris views the Arena as their community centre. "Even if you bring up renovations people get very passionate about it so we want to go nice and slow so people know exactly what’s happening."
The issue of the West Ferris arena first appeared in light of concerns around the timber trusses supporting the high roof within the Arena. It was determined, out of caution, to place limits on the snow accumulation on the barrel roof while a structural analysis was completed.
The analysis identified that the timber roof trusses are showing ongoing signs of deterioration and that the roof has exceeded its original design service life, but allows the full operation of the facility for three more years from the date of the study (2016).
The potential conceptual options explored in the MURF Study include:
- Rehabilitating West Ferris arena
- Adding a new dual pad at West Ferris arena site
- Adding a dual Pad at the Steve Omischl Sports Complex
- Adding a single or dual pad at Memorial Gardens
- Adding a dual pad as part of MURF in P3 partnership with Canadore
- Other potential partnerships (Private Public Partnership / Private)
“I have a preference and I think each councillor has a preference, but hopefully we can come to a consensus,” Vaillancourt said. “I’m sure there are pros and cons for every location, but if I were making the decision on my own I’d put two ice pads on the field behind the Gardens. I think it’s just a natural fit.”
While staff will be reporting to Committee on September 5 to present background information and discuss the potential replacement options of the West Ferris arena, Vaillancourt’s move has simply removed the authorization of staff to, in the interim, initiate preliminary geotechnical assessment.
According to the staff report brought forward Tuesday night, these preliminary assessments were included in the steps outlined to provide necessary information for council to make an informed decision on the Arena.
