The proposed retrofit of the Centennial Arena in Swan River will not go ahead.
Swan River Town Council held a special council meeting on the topic last night (Tues), and made the decision in large part due to the higher than projected costs.
Mayor Lance Jacobson explained a preliminary estimate of the project was around $7.2-million, but a new estimate increased to about $9-million.
“Our borrowing bylaw actually had said that was what our max for a project cost was going to be, so with it being at 9 (million dollars) coming in, we could not actually go even beyond that 7.2 (million) anyway. It would have to be down-sized to some degree.” Jacobson said.
The Centennial Arena, home of the Manitoba Junior Hockey League’s (MJHL) Swan Valley Stampeders, opened in 1967.
Had the retrofit been approved, it would have included the following upgrades: ice slab replacement and integration, including dasher board system replacement; building perimeter regrading; roofing and cladding replacement; HVAC and lighting upgrades; and structural, refrigeration and architectural repairs/upgrades.
Council voted on two resolutions at the meeting: one for renovating only the ice surface, and the other to establish a community group that would, among other things, research the costs of building a brand new arena and report back to Town Council.
The resolution to renovate the ice surface was defeated, but the resolution for the creation of the community group was passed.
“They would have to work on the fundraising efforts, there would have to be some partnerships perhaps, what the building might look like, estimates and so-forth.” said Jacobson of the community group.
He expects expects the whole process to take 3-to-5 years but a lot of the finer details, such as who can join the community group and when it would be formed, will need to be worked out in future meetings.
Jacobson also noted the Manitoba government did announce a $3.1-million grant, should the retrofit had been approved by Council. Jacobson said while they’re going in a new direction, this doesn’t stop the community from applying for provincial or federal grants.
Overall, the Mayor wants the public to get involved in the process.
“There will still have to be public participation at those times, there would have to be – if there’s any money committed to this from the Town of Swan River – public meetings and public hearings, so there’s still a lot more that is down this road.” the Mayor said.
The Town of Swan River conducted a survey to gauge what the public wanted to do with the arena. 48 percent of respondents were in favour of the retrofit, 38 percent wanted a new arena, and 14 percent said do nothing.
