Our Assessment of the 2005 Plans

Build it Right did not support Option A, Option B, or Option C as presented to the public on October 19, 2005. These plans are no longer on the table. In particular, we supported a broader vision for a community recreation and active living facility located in the Mainland Common as we felt Option A, Option B, and Option C were all insufficient to meet the growing needs of the community it would service.

Option C+ - Bait and Switch

Build it Right has many concerns with the current proposal: Option C+. In essence, we do not believe there were many differences between the options presented on October 19 (Option A, B, and C), and the overall facility plan presented on December 8 (Option C+). While there is a loose commitment to build a multi-purpose facility, there are significant unanswered questions on how the facility will be built. In particular, phasing and fund raising continue to be our primary apprehensions.

Phasing

Build it Right supports a phased approach to construct an adequate facility. However, we strongly believe the first phase should be built to service our community's immediate needs. Phase I of Option C+ is merely a slight improvement of Option B, which previously deemed unacceptable. Furthermore, Phase I of Option C+ is not significantly larger than Northcliffe Pool, and does not include desired dry-land components such as a fitness centre, meeting rooms, youth centre, gymnasiums or field house, squash courts, an ice rink, etc.

Phase II of Option C+ comes with a significant fund-raising burden of $5 million, and is not planned to open until December 2010. When complete, the total facility will consist of a lap pool that is no larger than Northcliffe, but will include several facility components the community currently does not have. While this is an improvement from what is currently available to the community, it does not go far enough.

Desired: Option C++ in one phase

Build it Right's primary concern with phasing is the uncertainty of completing future phases once a first phase is built. In accordance with our broader facility vision, we believe that with some minor adjustments, a facility sized similar to Option C+ is a good first phase and should be constructed all at once.