The City of North Bay and Canadore College will not be working together on construction of a new multi-use recreational facility. After a lengthy process, the city and Canadore have decided that the plan to partner on a community MURF and ice pads is not feasible.
Canadore President George Burton says finding a mutually-appropriate timeline for both partners wasn’t possible. He says while they had some of the same objectives for the facility, plans for delivering on these goals at the institutions were too far apart. Burton says they’re putting everything back on the table as they’re going it alone now. The new facility would accommodate academic programming and varsity, club and recreational athletics, including soccer, baseball, and football. The process is expected to get started this month, and officials are hopeful it will be open for the fall 2017 semester.
A variety of concepts for a new arena will soon be explored as the city moves forward with its game plan for addressing its aging recreational infrastructure. Although there is no commitment on where and when the facility will be built, the city has confirmed it will now be leading its own process to establish a new arena for North Bay.
Councillor Mark King is the chair of the City’s Community Services Committee. He says although a shared rec facility with Canadore would have been a great partnership opportunity, they understand that it needs to be mutually beneficial for all parties involved. King added the city remains committed to moving forward and creating a plan that outlines how to replace the aging West Ferris Arena.
The city will now begin the process of identifying the type of facility required, the appropriate location, and the capital costs associated with building the facility. Included in this process will be public consultation to confirm that needs identified in the 2013 MURF Study are still current. King says this outreach will build on the work that has been done in the past and will look at the big picture. He says recreational facilities are important for our community when looking to attract and retain businesses, residents, and sports tourism events to our region. The city hopes to have a report to council early in the New Year outlining the plan and potential options.
