A new 24,000 square foot multi-sport facility will allow the city to resume operating programs once offered in the Arenex – and even more.
New Westminster city council has approved the development of a structure consisting of a stretched fabric membrane over a rigid frame, similar to Poirier Forum in Coquitlam. Modular buildings will provide space for washrooms, change areas and administrative areas.
“Although we are talking about it being short-term, I think what’s come to our attention through this process is this facility and these types of structures can last 15 years,” said Mayor Jonathan Cote. “This might actually be able to serve us a little bit longer than even just a very short-term solution.”
A staff report states that the city has approved a $3.5 million budget for the project, with the majority of the money coming from the proceeds of insurance from the Arenex loss.
Dean Gibson, the city’s director of parks and recreation, said the new venue will be 24,000 square feet compared to the 10,000-square-foot Arenex, which means the city has an opportunity to have a permanent set-up for gymnastics and trampoline programs in about half of the new space. This will allow for expanded gymnastics and trampoline lesson programs.
“In addition, other gymnasium type sports, such as ball hockey, indoor soccer, volleyball, badminton, basketball, pickleball, etc., are expected to have access to the remainder of the space for expanded programming days and times. This will allow for a significant increase in offerings throughout the week during both daytime and evening hours,” he said. “Expanded programming is expected to be offered as soon as the new venue is completed and open to the public.”
Gibson said the facility will be located on the old reservoir tennis court that’s located between the former Arenex and Queen’s Park Stadium. Tenders for demolition recently closed, and demolition is likely to begin later this month or in early July.
“Given that the new structure will not be located on the same footprint as the former Arenex, construction can start as soon as a contract for the work is issued,” Gibson said in an email to the Record. “The timing of the demolition and the construction of the new facility are not connected. We expect the overall design and construction period for the new venue to take about 12 months. We will be in a better position to confirm schedules once contracts for the work are awarded.”
The city continues to consider if programs once offered at the Queen’s Park Arenex should be incorporated plans for the replacement of the Canada Games Pool and Centennial Community Centre facilities.
“In this regard, council is taking into account a series of scenarios, some of which may see some or all of the Arenex programs being integrated into a new facility at the CGP/CCC site,” said a City of New Westminster press release. “If gymnastics programs are incorporated into a future permanent facility, the interim structure can be made available to accommodate a variety of sports and recreation opportunities into the future.”
A recent online poll of more than 2,200 people found that 65 per cent of respondents supported the concept of relocating Arenex programs and services into an expanded Canada Games Pool/ Centennial Community Centre facility. Because that project isn’t happening immediately, the city proposed construction of a structure that would accommodate Arenex programs on an interim basis for the next several years, says a staff report.
The Record is awaiting comment from the engineering department about cause of the roof collapse and why the building is still on the site six months after its roof collapsed. The Arenex roof collapsed under the weight of snow on Dec. 19, 2016.
