Ground breaks on Toronto Pan Am Games facilities

Officials recently broke ground on the Pan Am and Parapan Am Aquatics Centre and Field House at the University of Toronto Scarborough Campus, the first of five brand new athletic facilities being built in the region to host the 2015 Games.

“Not only does this site represent the largest infrastructure investment ever made in Canadian amateur sport, it will also be a wonderful place where generations of students and local families can gather together as a community and access top-notch athletic facilities as a living legacy of the ‘People’s Games,’” said Toronto 2015 Pan Am/Parapan Am Games Organizing Committee (TO2015) chief executive officer Ian Troop.

Located at the University of Toronto Scarborough (UTSC) campus, the state-of-the-art multipurpose athletic centre will host swimming, diving, synchronized swimming, fencing and portions of modern pentathlon for the Toronto 2015 Pan Am Games.

This venue will be the sole aquatics facility in the region that meets the latest international competition standards and will be the first facility with the required warm-up pool.

The field house will feature a flexible gymnasium space for training and competition with a Games-time seating capacity of approximately 2,000, as well as an indoor recreational track and fitness area including cardio and weightlifting facilities.

The Canadian Sport Institute of Ontario (CSIO) will also relocate its head office to the centre, providing world-leading sport science and sport performance services including coaching and training facilities.

Formerly the Canadian Sports Centre Ontario, the CSIO is one of seven sport institutes across the country dedicated to enhancing the daily training environment of Canada’s high-performance athletes and coaches.

The project is expected to create 150 construction jobs.

The overall project costs for this facility are anticipated to come in at $205 million, below the estimated budget of $249 million.

Of the $205 million, $158 million is the amount to design, build and finance the project.

The remainder is comprised of capital expenditures on sports and facilities infrastructure and project management.

In July, PCL Aquatics Centre 2012 won the bid to handle the design, building and financing of the centre. The consortia consists of PCL Constructors Canada and NORR Ltd./Counsilman-Hunsaker.

Construction of the complex will be completed during summer 2014.

In addition to the five brand new buildings, a number of existing facilities across the Greater Golden Horseshoe will be upgraded to support the Games.

Infrastructure Ontario (IO) has been working with TO2015 and other partners to select companies to develop major infrastructure projects for the Toronto 2015 Pan/Parapan American Games.

All major venues will be under construction by early 2013, reports IO.

Approximately 8,000 athletes from 41 nations are expected to participate in 36 sports at the Toronto 2015 Pan Am/Parapan Games.

The Games will become the third Pan American Games hosted by Canada and the first ever in Ontario.

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Previously, Canada hosted the 1967 Pan American Games and the 1999 Pan American Games both in Winnipeg, Man. The 2015 Parapan American Games will be held 10 days after the Pan American Games.

The Pan Am Games will run July 10-26, 2015 and the Parapan Am Games Aug. 7-14, 2015.

DCN NEWS SERVICES