WCSG to leave a lasting legacy
While the 2019 Western Canada Summer Games may already seem like a distant memory, the event will have a lasting impact in the Southwest for years to come in the form of new equipment and new and upgraded recreational facilities in the Southwest.
Games Manager Denise Barbier submitted the final report to Swift Current City Council for the online meeting on May 4.
The final approval needed was for the distribution of the Legacy Fund of $155,061. The fund will be used primarily for purchases of athletic equipment, coaching development, and facilities improvements.
Preparations for the Games began in January of 2017 with a handful of people and eventually grew to nearly 2,000 staff and volunteers. The 2019 WCSG is the largest event ever held in Southwest Saskatchewan with 1,581 athletes and coaches who participated in 16 sports from August 9-18, 2019. The event utilized and showcased existing venues throughout the Southwest and also allowed the introduction of two new recreation facilities that will remain as legacies of the Games.
The two new facilities were the Highland Coulee Trails and the Riverside Park Beach Volleyball Courts. The Highland Coulee Trails are a professionally designed and built mountain bike course that can be used recreationally and competitively that has already become a popular hiking and biking area. The beach volleyball courts feature three fenced in sand courts on the Northwest corner of Riverside Park.
There were also facility upgrades to tennis courts in Swift Current and electrical power enhancements at Lac Pelletier Regional Park, the City Recreation Complex, Kinetic Park, and the Swift Current Comp. track and field area, where new sod was also added around the throwing and high jump areas. A new scoreboard at Mitchell Field was also added.
New sports equipment was left to numerous school and community clubs, including a wrestling mat, cycling ramp, track and field equipment, sports balls, soccer goals, beach volleyball nets, scoreboards, buoys, and finish arch.
The Legacy Fund will benefit community organizations across the Southwest. One of the major recipients is the SCCHS athletics program with $30,000 allotted for purchase of competition hurdles and carts, which will also be made available to regional schools and clubs to use.
$10,000 was also directed towards the conversion of Ford Field to make it a bantam sized baseball field.
$9,000 was bookmarked for nine different golf courses in the Southwest to help junior golf development at each grass green course. The Swift Current Aquatic Centre received $7,000 for backstroke ledges.
A total of $5,000 was allotted to purchase and donate two volleyballs to 32 schools in the Southwest. $5,000 was also directed to the Swift Current Titans Wrestling Club for a small wrestling mat as well as funds for a new wrestling dummy and for upcoming clinics.
Money was also given to community programs in Swift Current, Lac Pelletier, Shauanvon, and Maple Creek.
As previously announced, the Total Gross Output for tourism was calculated at $1,040,000 and created 13.13 jobs.
The Total Gross Output for the operational expenses of the event was $4,730,000 and created 22.53 jobs.