Pelham community centre, arena starting to take shape

Mayor Dave Augustyn says it’s very exciting seeing steel frames go up at the town’s community centre.

“You know what things are going to look like,” says the mayor, adding there’s work going on on the future Duliban Insurance Arena on the south side of the facility right now. “Things are progressing very well.”

When complete sometime in late June or early July 2018, the 12,600-square-metre Pelham Community Centre will include a double gym, a large multi-use room, and two NHL-sized ice pads, the Accipiter Arena with 1,000 seats and the Duliban Insurance Arena with 100 seats. Construction on the facility began last fall, with Ball Construction working with a community oversight committee consisting of residents, town staff and community/user groups.

“They’re making sure everything is on time and on budget,” Augustyn says of the oversight committee.

Augustyn says instead one of company doing all of the work on the community centre, different components are being tendered out in an effort to get favourable pricing. For a facility costing $36.2 million, $9 million was debentured in 2016, which saw Pelham taxes go up. A further $12 million is expected to be raised through the sale of lands around the facility, at the corner of Rice Road and Regional Road 20. Another $12 million will come through development charges, and $3 million will come from fundraising efforts.

The town will hold a news conference Thursday from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m. at Peninsula Lake Golf Course to announce that $1 million of the $3 million has been raised so far. The number of named spaces at the new community centre will also be released at the time.

Augustyn says the town was able to secure five-year agreements with Pelham Minor Hockey Association, Pelham Panthers Basketball Association, Pelham Jr. B. Hockey Club and Southern Tier Admirals AAA Hockey. He says the new facility will see Welland Raiders Minor Lacrosse and Niagara Centre Skating Club come back to Pelham.

“We’ve come in better than the business case for usage of the community centre, and we’re very pleased with that.”