Chetwynd, B.C. – Monday, November 6, 2017
The public and project supporters were all on hand this past Thursday as the District of Chetwynd celebrated the completion of their new arena upgrades.
Recreation facility upgrades are always a proud moment for communities and it was no different for the District of Chetwynd as Mayor Merlin Nichols, Northern Development’s CEO Joel McKay, and representatives from the Peace River Regional District participated in the ribbon cutting ceremony for the arena.
The Chetwynd & District Ice Arena is a hub of the community, serving an approximate population of 6,500 people in the region. The Rec Centre is equipped with a gym, swimming pool, climbing wall, squash court, and the rink. The aging rink infrastructure received much-needed upgrades to the concrete floor, refrigeration system, and new boards. These upgrades were supported through Northern Development’s Economic Diversification Infrastructure program, providing $250,000 in approved funding towards the $2.2 million project. The project was aimed towards revitalizing the rink in order to increase usage from local and visiting hockey teams to regular arena rentals.
These new infrastructure improvements to the Chetwynd & District Ice Arena will allow the arena to continue offering a safe, usable community space and increase use for sports rentals, tournaments, sports training and community events, both on ice and dry concrete surface. The increased capacity in usage will also bring in more revenue for the community and provide economic growth throughout the region. Being the only recreation facility for Chetwynd, these replacements made to the existing infrastructure will reduce operational costs for the community, by creating savings in maintenance hours and supplies and will eliminate the risk of a system failure leading to a possible closure of the facility.
QUOTES
Joel McKay, CEO, Northern Development Initiative Trust
Recreation facilities such as the Chetwynd and District Arena are an essential part of our communities in northern B.C. Northern Development is very proud to have partnered in this project for the new arena upgrades. These improvements will provide a safe and functional facility for all community members and has the potential to attract new users to the region.
Merlin Nichols, Mayor, District of Chetwynd
Chetwynd is pleased and grateful to have received this grant for infrastructure improvements that will allow our residents many years of safe family recreation. Thank you to Northern Development and our other partners.
About Northern Development Initiative Trust
Northern Development Initiative Trust combines funding with smart thinking to help Northern British Columbia thrive. The Trust was created for the north and is led by the north. Since 2005, Northern Development has found more than 2,700 ways to say “yes” to economic diversification in our region, attracting more than $1.3 billion in new investment to the region.
