With the onset of spring break, ice rink users will be utilizing their time on the ice to the fullest and they are hoping to see that ice use extended even further.
The Sunshine Coast Skating Club and adult hockey league are working to keep the Sunshine Coast Arena in Sechelt open from April 11 to May 19.
Presenting their case at the March 19 Sunshine Coast Regional District (SCRD) community services meeting, both groups were seeking approval of arena usage, claiming there is enough support from various user groups to cover spring ice-related costs.
Skating Club representatives told the committee they question the costs SCRD staff have set for spring ice, saying they felt a number of items, such as bank charges and administration fees, should not be included in the budget. They also feel the budget for repair and maintenance is set for the busiest periods of ice usage, from September to March, and that spring ice would require a lower level of wear and tear. This, in turn, would reduce the current maintenance fees.
The skating club argued that removing all those fees would result in a savings of just over $1,200, lowering the current weekly fee of $5,000 to around $3,800. Committed user groups, they explained, would easily cover that amount. Representatives also stressed the importance of spring ice for their club stating: as a skater develops, it becomes a year-round sport.
Gord Clayton, speaking on behalf of local hockey players wishing to use spring ice, shared the same sentiment as the skating club. He also suggested the SCRD take a more pro-active approach in organizing formalized hockey leagues in order to enable additional revenue.
The availability of spring ice has been an on-going issue between various user groups and the SCRD for the past few years. SCRD staff has maintained that it must recover costs for the ice to remain available.
"I don't find it surprising that we disagree" said SCRD recreation services manager Bruce Bauman in response to the issue. "If you look at all our budget lines as part of a regional district, our administrative costs are approximately 10 to 11 per cent based upon total expenditures. Therefore, if you increase your expenditures by paying additional wages or additional whatever, during the time you're open, you will incur an additional administration fee of 10 per cent. And if our costs are $5,000, which we are saying that they are, we will incur a 10 per cent charge of $500 a week."
Directors saw the need for further discussion on the matter and recommended that staff meet with the user groups to work on finding a solution. Directors also recommended that recreation staff sit down with finance staff to examine cost issues. Results from both meetings are to be reported back at the next corporate services committee meeting.
