Leamington sports dome project clears hurdle
Town OKs zoning bylaw amendment; plan is to let other groups use facility
The Windsor-Essex Catholic District School Board’s plan to build a sportsdome at the site of the former Queen of Peace elementary school has taken a step forward after Leamington council approved amendments to the municipality’s zoning bylaws.
Plans for the 54,176-square-foot facility will now move to the siteapproval phase with hopes of construction beginning this summer. Terry Lyons, the board’s director of education, said the complex should open in early 2019. “We want to continue the equity of access of opportunities in the county for kids and expand our academy programs,” Lyons said. “We’ve had tremendous success with our academies. We’re seeing improved academic success and a reduction in behavioural issues. “Kids are happy and engaged and love what they’re doing in these programs.”
To make the project work, the Catholic board needed amendments that allowed a smaller side-yard setback — from nine metres to 3.87 metres — and fewer required parking spaces — from 677 to 182 spots. The sportsdome will be built to the west of the existing school and will be connected to the building. “We’ll be able to use one of our closed schools again,” Lyons said. “It will allow us to have classrooms on-site and washroom facilities are already there.”
Lyons said the board envisions the sportsdome being more than just a school facility.
The bigger vision is to create a community hub concept that will see the complex open for use by the Leamington community in the evening.
“The board is in several conversations with a variety of community partners,” Lyons said. “We want this to be a place for the whole community to use. There’s the Sherk Centre out there, but there isn’t anything like this in the area now. “It’s going to be 10,000-squarefeet larger than the existing school that’s there now.”
Lyons said the facility could offer recreational opportunities for the large migrant worker population that works in the area’s greenhouse industry.
“They’d have the opportunity to come and play soccer and participate in something they love,” Lyons said. “We hope to develop something valuable to the community.” With the ongoing talks with potential community users and potential partnerships, Lyons said the final cost of the facility hasn’t been settled on yet.
From the board’s perspective, the complex will allow for expansion of the sports academies at Cardinal Carter high school and the middle school that’s embedded in it. The inflatable dome could be large enough to accommodate a 90-metre soccer field lengthwise or two smaller fields of about 50 metres long set side-by-side. In addition to soccer, the dome could be used for baseball, golf and any other sport or activity needing large indoor space.
“With classrooms right on site, it’ll be similar to the concept of our sports academy at Central Park Athletics,” Lyons said. “That’s our vision.”
The Catholic board currently has nearly 600 students in 27 academies throughout its system. In addition to its sports’ offerings, the board also has academic academy programming, such as Assumption’s aeronautics and the science, math, technology and engineering academy at Holy Names.
“It’s a concept that’s really working well for us,” Lyons said. “The kids are telling us they like the concept and we’re seeing better credit accumulation. “We’re also building great private-public partnerships in the community like the one we have with Central Park Athletics, which is unprecedented in the province.”
We want to continue the equity of access of opportunities in the county for kids and expand our academy programs.