Georgetown Arena Task Force Do Not Endorse The ‘Physical Saving’ Of Memorial Arena

At a recent meeting of the Georgetown Arena Task Force (February 18), the Members voted unanimously to end the on-going use of the Memorial Arena, signaling the need to plan for a future replacement.

Many Delegations were heard regarding the need for an arena surface to replace Memorial but not for the keeping of the building itself. It was acknowledged by the Task Force that there is a short-term need to keep the Memorial Arena functioning in the near future, until replacement(s) are established. The poor user effectiveness of a single-pad verses a multi-pad arena; the cost of refurbishing vs replacement; the operating inefficiencies of this arena along with the limited functional value of the undersized surface to the User Groups were all identified as serious deficiencies for Memorial during the seven meetings held to date by the Task Force and led to the Task Force’s conclusion.

Structural Reports indicated the significant refurbishing required. And those Reports along with a tour of the building enabled the Task Force to make an informed decision. It is important to note that Memorial Arena will be maintained as an appropriately functioning arena, until such time as its replacement can be finalized.

The Georgetown Hockey Heritage Council made a presentation endorsing the keeping of a ‘fitting memory’ of Memorial but did not support the maintenance of the current 86 year old structure.

Dave Kentner, Chairman of the Georgetown Hockey Heritage Council stated: “The Georgetown Heritage Council supports the Arena Task Force recommendation to decommission Georgetown Memorial Arena. The Hockey Heritage Council looks forward to being a part of the efforts to create a permanent record of the roll Georgetown Memorial Arena has played in the history of our hockey community.”

“The Georgetown Arena Task Force is appreciative of the position stated by the Georgetown Heritage Council and the many supportive comments made by delegations” said Task Force Chair, Bryan Lewis.

The Task Force now sets out to complete the mandate of the Terms of Reference and conclude, by April 30th, 2009, their recommendations for the number of arenas needed to service Halton Hills.

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