 | Home page |  | Text size |  | E-mail this page |
Reopening of Fort Smith arena delayed Temporary trailers for change rooms and washrooms late for fire-damaged facility
Paul Bickford
Northern News Services
Published Satursday, September 28, 2013
HAY RIVER
It looks like skaters and hockey players in Fort Smith may have to wait an extra month before getting back into Centennial Arena, which was damaged by fire in the spring.
Fort Smith Centennial Arena, which was damaged by a fire in May, is now expected to be reopened by Nov. 15. - NNSL file photo
|
Earlier this month, it was expected the arena would be reopened on Oct. 15 in a temporary arrangement to allow the ice to be used while repairs proceed to the fire-damaged section of the building. That will involve placing two trailers just outside an entrance to the arena – one containing washrooms and the other change rooms.
"We just got notified from the company Britco that is doing the trailers that there are some supply issues with the trailers in front of ours. So it's going to delay ours," said Mayor Brad Brake on Sept. 18.
Brake said it looks like the revised opening date for the arena will now be Nov. 15.
"It could change again," he said. "You never know, maybe things will come through and it will get pushed up again."
The company is telling the town that the two trailers should be ready to ship north on Oct. 21.
"I am a little disappointed, but it's the nature of the beast when you order," Brake said.
The mayor said there hasn't yet been a lot of discussion of alternatives that might get the arena in use until the trailers arrive, but he noted the Ice Users Committee – which was set up following the fire – may be meeting on Sept. 24.
"They may want to discuss things then," he said.
Possible alternatives that might be considered could include hockey players showing up with their gear already on, and perhaps placing portable toilets outside the arena.
"That might be an option we can look at. I don't know for sure," Brake said.
Jessica Cox, chair of the Fort Smith Recreation Advisory Board, is not happy to hear the latest news about the arena.
"I mean, it is disappointing and it's no fault of the town's, either," she said. "It is very frustrating, but it seems to be beyond our control. I'm not sure yet what kind of options the town is exploring for the interim."
Cox said possible alternative arrangements until the trailers are ready would likely depend on the weather.
"I would think, if there's a late start to winter and we don't have freezing conditions, that possibly the town would entertain the idea of bringing in porta-potties to the site to have the facilities there," she said.
Despite the delay, Cox said things are still looking better than they did after the fire in May.
"It's a little bit of a hiccup, but the fact that we'll have an indoor artificial ice surface this winter is more than we expected we would have, certainly in late May and June this year," she said.
Cox also believes all ice users will adjust to a later opening of the arena.
"I know, as a hockey player in my conversations with other arena users, people are generally very excited to get on with a reasonably normal season, even if there's a late start to it," she said.
An insurance company is providing $250,000 for loss of use to cover expenses to continue operations while repairs are ongoing. That will include the temporary trailers.
The community also has $25,000 recently won in the Kraft Celebration Tour, a national contest, to help pay for those temporary measures. Repairs to the arena will cost between $800,000 and $1.2 million, and will be covered by insurance. There is also a separate pool of insurance money – $250,000 – for code upgrades outside the fire-damaged area.
It is expected the arena will be back to its pre-fire state by October 2014.
The May 13 fire damaged or destroyed the arena's public washrooms, a change room, a First Aid room, a boiler room, and a section of the stands for spectators.
| 
