The Municipality of North Perth in southwestern Ontario is replacing the aging Listowel Memorial Arena with a modern and environmentally friendly recreation complex.
Completion is scheduled for late this year, ahead of the upcoming hockey season.
Steve Hardie, the municipality’s director of parks and recreation, said that while LEED certification is not being sought, a number of green features are being incorporated into the project.
"We are looking at as many opportunities as we can to make this facility environmentally friendly," he said.
Green features include the incorporation of LED lighting, installation of a heat recovery system and measures to reduce energy consumption. Bike lanes to and from the building are also planned.
The construction budget is in the $13-million neighbourhood, Hardie said.
Designed by Whitby-based Barry Bryan Associates (BBA), a firm of architects, engineers and project managers, the Steve Kerr Memorial Complex is being built by Ball Construction.
BBA is also providing structural engineering services. DEI & Associates Inc. is supplying consulting mechanical and electrical engineering services.
Being constructed on a former farmer’s field in the west end of Listowel, the multi-use, 63,500-square-foot complex includes a regulation-size ice surface, approximately 750 seats, six dressing rooms, a two-lane indoor walking track, shared community space and an outdoor, lit soccer field.
It is being built in close proximity to the North Perth Westfield Elementary School and North Perth-Spinrite Child & Family Centre. The co-ordination of recreation and education services is intended to create a community hub.
Hardie said the new recreation complex, named after a local sports enthusiast who was killed in a car accident a few years ago, has been designed to accommodate future expansion.
"A second ice pad or an aquatic centre could potentially be added in the future," he said.
North Perth Council opted to build a new facility rather than renovate the existing arena following a review of municipal infrastructure facilities that was undertaken in 2008.
That review identified significant deficiencies and shortcomings in the case of the arena, originally constructed in the early 1950s. The ice surface was rebuilt following the collapse of the roof in 1959.
Subsequent improvements were made in the 1980s that Hardie said were intended "to buy us another 20 years of use."
"It’s now going on almost 30 years," he said.
Identified deficiencies included the small ice surface, the need for 200 additional parking spaces, a shortage of dressing rooms, leaks in the brine system under the ice surface and the poor condition of both floors and the roof. The facility also was not fully accessible.
Council ultimately decided that replacing the arena was preferable to sinking an estimated $4 million in capital funds into rehabilitating the existing facility.
"It all came down to dollars and cents," Hardie said.
A community fundraising campaign was launched. At the end of the day, $5 million was raised, which Hardie said was an "astonishing" accomplishment, given the size of the community.
"This really pushed the project forward."
The municipality, which has a population of just over 13,000, also tapped federal gas tax rebates to help make the project a reality. Kerr’s family is donating $1 million.
"In a municipality such as ours, the availability of sports and recreation facilities is looked upon as an essential amenity that is offered," Hardie said.
Ground was officially broken last June.
"We expect the facility to be fully enclosed within the next one to two months," Hardie said in mid-March. "We expect to be moving into the facility in late 2017."
Kitchener-based Ball Construction was retained as construction manager at risk following a request for proposals process.
"We had used this approach previously and were quite satisfied with the results," Hardie said. "We felt this led to more of a team approach, working with the construction manager, the consultants and the community volunteers."
Key subtrades include Bluecon Construction (site work), Konia Masonry, ComSteel Building Solutions Inc. (pre-engineered metal building), Velocity Mechanical Inc., Stecho Electric and SCS Refrigeration.
In terms of construction challenges, Rod Aitken, vice-president of preconstruction at Ball, said the firm was faced with poor soil conditions at the start of construction.
"The soil had to be removed and engineered fill brought in to make a strong base for the building to sit on," he said. "This was done very quickly in order to maintain our construction schedule so that the project can meet its timeline."
Arena construction is one of the niche markets targeted by Ball. The firm has completed more than 40 ice pads in the past 20 years.
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