The Otway Nordic Centre is ready to host the 2015 Canada Winter Games thanks to the local business community.
The Caledonia Nordic Ski Club’s new technical building at Otway Nordic Centre in Prince George has been built to meet International Ski Federation standards, which will allow the club to host nationally sanctioned sporting events and generate new revenue for the local economy.
But the club, which has more than 1,800 members, couldn’t have done it without community support.
In addition to the $30,000 grant from Northern Development Initiative Trust to help build the technical building, dozens of companies and organizations supplied equipment and donated supplies or services to make the building a reality, proving that the club has strong support locally.
For example, forestry giant Interfor donated the cedar siding, Conifex Timber provided lumber, All West Glass helped with windows and doors and Carrier Lumber provided help moving supplies to the site, to name a few.
The building is designed to provide space for officials to make it easier for the club to host competitions ranging from major national and international events to youth and local recreational ski competitions.
The technical building can also host running, cycling and multi-sport events such as the Prince George Iceman, and will serve as a new administrative support building to expand the club’s athletic programs.
Earlier this year, the club was able to better host the Haywood NorAm Western Canadian Cross-Country Ski Championships, which helped generate in excess of $1 million of economic impact for the local economy.
Northern Development’s funding was provided through the Trust’s Community Halls and Recreation Facilities program, which provides municipalities, regional districts, First Nations bands and registered non-profit organizations with up to 50% of a project’s budget to a maximum of $30,000 in funding to improve or expand existing facilities.
Testimonials
“The technical building provides us with the ability to host more competitions than ever before and further develop and expand our athletic programs,” said Jim Burbee, Director of Competitions, Caledonia Nordic Ski Club. “This building is a game changer for us as a club and we simply couldn’t have done it without the community support we received.”
“The Otway Technical Building is an example of a recreation project that not only generates new revenue for the region, but also will allow an important recreation facility to expand and offer more services for the local community,” said Brenda Gendron, CFO, Northern Development Initiative Trust.
Quick Facts
• The Caledonia Nordic Ski Club is the largest ski club in the province with more than 1,800 members
• The club’s new technical building at Otway has been built to meet International Ski Federation standards, which will allow the club to host nationally sanctioned sporting events
• Northern Development provided a $30,000 grant to support construction of the new building
• 20 businesses and organizations provided supplies, services and their time to help make the building a reality
• In 2014, the club hosted the Haywood NorAm Western Canadian Cross-Country Ski Championships, which generated more than $1 million of economic impact for the Prince George area
Key numbers
• $30,000 – the amount of funding Northern Development contributed toward the development of the Otway Technical Building
• $247,600 – the estimated project budget for the technical building
• $207,560 – the value of monetized donations from community partners and private investors
• 20 – the number of local businesses and organizations that donated supplies or services to make the technical building a reality
• $1.1 million – the economic impact of the Haywood NorAm Western Canadian Cross-Country Ski Championships held at Otway in 2014
• 1,800+ – the membership of the Caledonia Nordic Ski Club
Funding partners
Caledonia Nordic Ski Club
Contact
Jim Burbee
Director of Competitions
Caledonia Nordic Ski Club
competitions@caledonianordic.com
caledonianordic.com
Brenda Gendron
Chief Financial Officer
Northern Development Initiative Trust
brenda@northerndevelopment.bc.ca
www.northerndevelopment.bc.ca
