Photo: City of Kamloops
An arena multiplex, including four sheets of ice, is proposed as part of the Build Kamloops initiative for an old dump site on Hillside Drive.
A Kamloops councillor says a new arena multiplex proposed for a former dump site in Dufferin would provide the community with much-needed ice surfaces while offering amenities for other groups, including nature park users, in a growing area of the city.
The multiplex is one of several big-ticket facilities proposed as part of the Build Kamloops initiative, which seeks to make headway on priorities laid out in the City of Kamloops’ 2019 recreation master plan.
On Tuesday, city council unanimously approved a plan to seek voters’ assent to borrow up to $275 million — $125 million of which would be earmarked for design and construction of the arena multiplex.
Coun. Mike O’Reilly, chair of the Build Kamloops committee, said the multiplex was prioritized along with a performing arts centre due to the high demand for ice surfaces in the Tournament Capital.
“We have not had a net new sheet of ice added in Kamloops since 1992, when the Riverside Coliseum opened — now the Sandman Centre,” O’Reilly said.
He noted the city gained an ice surface when the Olympic sheet was built on McArthur Island, but lost a surface with the closure of the Ice Box, an arena located on Tk’emlups land.
“We have families that are driving their five and six year olds to Chase and to Logan Lake for practices, which isn’t right. We have two hours of public skate time for skating,” O’Reilly said.
“When the Ice Box shut down, there was a 16-team women’s league, I believe — and that league completely shut down and collapsed at that time. There is a demand for ice in Kamloops, and it’s not, ‘Hey, we think the demand is coming and we need to build up to it.’ We are significantly short. That was 10 years ago when we were short.”
The multiplex is estimated to cost about $140 million — a price tag O’Reilly says the city arrived at after looking at a number of similar facilities across Canada.
The building is planned to include four ice rinks with spectator seating, modern change rooms and sport amenities, fitness facilities, multi-purpose rooms and food and beverage services.
When the ice is removed, the facility could be used for dryland sports like lacrosse, or for hosting events and trade shows. O’Reilly said the establishment of another arena would also help the city gain capacity to host evacuees during emergency events while retaining needed sports and recreation space.
Reclaiming dump site, providing park amenities
The city looked at a number of potential locations for the multiplex, and landed on the Dufferin site due in part to its quick access off the highway and close proximity to hotels and retail.
The facility would be built on city-owned land at 2070 Hillside Dr., adjacent to the main entrance of Kenna Cartwright Park. O’Reilly said using municipal land will allow the city to take the money it would have used to purchase property and put it into the facility instead.
During a presentation to city council on Tuesday, Kristen Rodrigue, the city’s communications manager, said the parcel of land on Hillside Drive was a dump site during the development of the Coquihalla Highway.
“The potential is reminiscent of the redevelopment of McArthur Island from a sewage lagoon to the spectacular multi-purpose recreation destination it is now,” Rodrigue said.
O’Reilly said by building this multiplex, the city would be reclaiming the old waste area left since the six lanes of highway were built in the early 1980s — a space that is currently a brownfield site.
He said the multiplex will also provide amenities for people who visit Kenna Cartwright Park. He noted the facility would be located adjacent to the park’s busiest entrance, which welcomes 11,000 people per month in the spring, summer and fall seasons.
“The amount of tens of thousands of users that use that park entrance alone — and we have one outhouse toilet to service those people. That’s a very real problem as well,” O’Reilly said.
O’Reilly said population growth in that area of the city also factored into their decision.
“We know that about 70 per cent of the growth in Kamloops is going to happen in the southwest in the next 30 years,” he said.
If the city receives the blessing of its electorate to borrow money through an alternative approvals process, design work for the arena multiplex could start in 2025, and construction in 2026 — with the potential for the arena to open its doors by the end of this decade.
Alongside the arena multiplex, the Build Kamloops initiative is also prioritizing the Kamloops Centre for the Arts, a curling facility, an indoor field facility and an aquatic centre on the North Shore.
A new Kamloops Seniors Community Centre on the North Shore is expected to open its doors in the fall — another part of the Build Kamloops plan.
The city has also entered into a partnership with Kamloops Youth Soccer Association for repairs and upgrades to its soccer dome, and is helping to support the transition of the Parkview Activity Centre to a child care centre.
An open house is being held at Kelson Hall on Tuesday, July 9, from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m. for members of the public to hear more about Build Kamloops.