A small crowd who gathered to discuss the future of the Peterborough Memorial Centre believe the aging arena should be repurposed.
About 100 people attended a public consultation held at the Evinrude Centre where city-hired consultants Sierra Planning and Management explained that at this point they are trying to determine whether residents have an appetite to replacing the 63-year-old Memorial Centre with a new major sport and event centre.
The consultants believe the Memorial Centre has numerous “functional challenges” such as a lack of seating and inadequate and small washrooms.
In the audience, there was widespread agreement the arena has had its day but many felt it should be kept and repurposed. Some audience ideas included an indoor walking track or a trampoline park.
“As a sporting venue goes, the PMC has outlived its usefulness and as this man said, it can’t really be renovated and fixed,” said one audience member.
Location of a new facility had the audience divided whether it could be a good fit in the city’s downtown or elsewhere. Sierra Planning says it has reviewed some locations but would not disclose which ones.
Some in the crowd felt an arena downtown would complement restaurants and other businesses.
But some also said parking is already limited and a new arena would not stand out among older buildings.
Another concern echoed during the meeting was the lack of accommodations for out of town teams visiting for major sporting events in Peterborough. Often sports teams have to stay at hotels or motels in Lindsay or Port Hope. It was suggested wherever the new facility is built, there should be new hotel development nearby.
The consultants will continue to gather residents’ opinions about the new major sport and event centre with the intention of releasing a report to city council in May.
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