Heading into the third year of the popular ice skating attraction known as 'Sk8te Hollinger', Ken Pye is seeking an ambitious goal.
This week at city council, Pye was added to the agenda at the last minute where he explained that he was originally intending to be there to make his formal request for funding assistance, as he did last year.
"But I was approached by a group of people to turn it into a non-profit, and so we're going through that right now. But in the meantime, we have some weather sensitive stuff that I'd like to get done at the park prior to coming back to council on the 14th," he said, noting he will return at the November 14 meeting.
Pye brought a slideshow presentation with him explaining his intentions for the 2017-2018 winter season. The outer dimensions of the figure-8 will remain the same, however the 'intersection' will be made more spacious. The problem is that there a trash bin in the way, which is anchored approximately 12 feet into the ground.
He is also requesting permission to bury the electrical wires that feed the lights surrounding the ice.
"We want to do this because we want to keep building this '8' and we don't want to tear up the lawn every year. Because apparently there's a new lawn going in next year," said Pye, referring to the upcoming re-design of the north section of the park.
Also requested to be addressed as soon as possible were:
- The removal of certain park benches, which would be used inside the public trailers
- Insulation of the water line in the centre of Hollinger Park in order to avoid freezing
- Agree on an access route to the water hut
- Have the park's washrooms open for the winter
"We're also proposing to build 24 pond hockey rinks," said Pye, which raised a few councillor eyebrows.
The figure-8 loop is situated on the north side of the park, and is lined with ambient coloured lights, decor, and after Christmas, hundreds of evergreen trees. The hockey rinks are situated on the south side of the park, at Fred Salvador Field. A large pond hockey style tournament is also in the works.
"These are small hockey rinks, just so everybody understands. They are 50 by 100(feet) and the rink I built last year was 100 by 200."
He unveiled a grid-like plan for the layout of the rinks, which are named after nearby city streets.
"So you've got Spruce, and Pine, and Cedar, and Algonquin, Third, Second, and First. That's how you find your rink," explained Pye.
Councillor Andrew Marks thanked Pye for his efforts in the last few years.
"This adds to the life of Timmins. I can tell you I've spent time there with my family. I'm not a skater, but for me to go with my dad, who is 80, and for him to go around the oval and have all my family come out, it's made some great memories."
Marks said the issue he had was that these requests were not in the original council package, so they were quite new, and with the 2018 budget deliberations currently underway, he felt it was prudent to get all of the proper information before moving ahead.
"I just need somebody to have a little bit of a plan to make sure that we can do this, and it makes sense, in a timely fashion, to help you, which helps all of us," he said.
Councillor Rick Dubeau echoed Marks' sentiment that a proper staff report is required before council can make a decision, with regards to costs and feasibility.
Councillor Pat Bamford said he was unsure how Sk8te Hollinger fits into the re-design of Hollinger Park going forward, while saying it was a very popular attraction. He also felt that more time and a staff report was needed.
Councillor Noella Rinaldo said that she believed the requests weren't going to be particularly costly, but wondered what else was coming on Nov. 14.
"I think my concern isn't so much this first ask, it's what's going to be the second ask, that's my concern. And we're kind of committing ourselves. I'm not sure about the rink plan. It's a pretty elaborate plan," she told Pye.
This NHL sized ice sheet was an addition of Sk8te Hollinger this past winter. Situated on Fred Salvador Field, and with the help of tower lights, multiple games of shinny could take place well into the night. Andrew Autio for TimminsToday "I hope you can make this work. I think the work you do is amazing. I think your volunteers are amazing, and I'm hoping we can do it."
After absorbing the discussion, Mayor Steve Black made a suggestion.
"I think the best route, if council is supportive, is to allow staff to come back and hopefully over the next few days, put together a quick summary of what can be done and what the costs may be, and try and work through that."
Black also spoke about how the city's 'Grants to Organizations' policy was recently completely revamped.
"Council took it out of council's hands, and came up with an application process for everyone to go through, and that's done through the Clerk's office."
He also recommended that if it was council's direction to continue supporting Sk8te Hollinger, in whatever financial terms, that perhaps it should be built into the annual Parks and Recreation budget.
Council reached a consensus to direct staff to put together a feasibility report.
"We will get back to you as soon as possible on these requests so that you can get set up for another great year," said Black.
