Yorkton Council had two interesting proposals to discuss Monday at its regular meeting.
The first was brought forward by the Yorkton Exhibition Association who attended the meeting looking for financial support in what would be a co-operative effort between the Association and the City to revitalize the grandstand.
Over the years the grandstand has been an integral element of the community fabric as the locale of a range of events from the RCMP Musical Ride, truck and tractor pulls, GX94 Star Search, demolition derbies, Rhythm 'n Ribs, and monster trucks.
It is hard to envision the community not having the facility.
But, the grandstand is old, and while over the last 30-plus years there have been efforts to keep it functioning, those have ultimately been bandages and now a much more major rehabilitation project is required, one the YEA has pegged at $530,000. They want the City to invest $250,000, and to bankroll the rest to be paid back.
While Council agreed to have Administration look more closely at the project plan, the requested money was not approved, even in principle, which is troubling in the sense the grandstand is not something the City can simply let fall down and live without.
The second item is a much more costly endeavour, the project, that at its core replaces the aging Kinsmen Arena, and at the same time does some upgrades to the existing arena complex at the Gallagher Centre.
This is a $22 million-plus dollar project, but like the grandstand has to be carried forward at some point because it is again difficult to envision our city without two ice surfaces.
Yes, the scope is beyond an ice replacement, now encompassing upgrades to the existing arena, but this too is work long overdue.
The arena is the keystone of the Gallagher Centre complex yet was all but ignored in the expansion that added the flexihall, indoor pool and convention centre upgrades. As a result, among the issues are the dressing rooms are small, cramped, and out-of-date. To undertake a project at the site and not address Westland Arena needs would be folly on the part of City Council.
Some are going to lament such spending at a time when the impact of COVID-19 remains unknown for the City, but there are a few underlying factors to consider here.
To begin with, there is a positive side to spending today in the face of COVID. It puts people to work locally, and the wages of those workers spin through our local restaurants, hotels, and stores.
And, the projects, are needed now, but are not paid for today. Like all major projects they are paid for over a number of years. Thankfully the City has managed its debt well. It has the ability to borrow for these projects, and even some built in capacity to handle payments as the original Gallagher Centre loan is nearing its final payment.
It should also be remembered that while COVID might impact the 2020 tax year, the projects above are not being paid for out of the 2020 tax pie.
In the case of the arena project, the first payment would not likely be required until 2022, perhaps 2023, if the shovels were in the ground next year.
If COVID is still thwarting a willingness to invest three years into the future ,the City, province and country will have more issues to deal with than regretting a positive arena build locally.
The arena and grandstand, while hugely different in scope, are the types of projects that stabilize an economy at a time a positive message of normalcy and growth is needed, and it maintains two cornerstones of community activities, the grandstand and a second ice surface.
Ultimately Council needs to boldly proceed with both for the future of our community.
