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Resolution arena getting new roof

Paul Bickford
Northern News Services
Monday, July 9, 2007

FORT RESOLUTION - The arena in Fort Resolution is getting a new roof, which is good news for a community that relies on the facility for much of its winter recreation.

The roof of Lakeview Arena had been leaking prior to a patch-up job which got the facility through last winter.

Sheila Bassi-Kellett, assistant deputy minister with the Department of Municipal and Community Affairs (MACA), said about $400,000 has been found to replace the roof.

She said the plan is to undertake the project this summer. "That's our hope. We want to work with the weather."

Bassi-Kellett said the arena roof is worth fixing once and for all. "It should lengthen the lifespan quite a bit."

The existing shingles will be replaced by a metal roof.

Bassi-Kellett noted the shingles take a beating from winds coming off Great Slave Lake, and the metal roof will stand up better against the elements.

She added the government recognizes the importance of the arena to Fort Resolution and would not want to see the facility closed. "That would just be a sad thing."

The tender call for the project closed June 28 and one bid was received from Arcan Construction Ltd. for $364,600.

As of last week, the bid was being reviewed and the tender had not yet been awarded.

Tausia Lal, the senior administrative officer with the Deninoo Community Council, is happy the roof will be replaced.

"That's been a long time coming," she said.

Lal is hoping the work can be completed before the winter begins. "We have confidence that it will be."

The arena is a major part of recreation in Fort Resolution, she added. "In the winter, it's very well used."

Prior to this past winter, MACA spent about $130,000 on the roof patch-up project which got the arena through the season.

The department owns the building, but it is operated by the community council.

The council closed the building in March of last year over concerns about the leaky roof and relatively minor fire safety issues, which have since been addressed.

The arena, which uses natural ice, is normally ready for skating and hockey by early December.