The city’s chair of Community Services says there are still three potential sites for a new arena in North Bay to replace West Ferris Arena.
Councillor Johanne Brousseau tells BayToday they include Memorial Gardens, the West Ferris Arena site and the Omischl Complex.
“They did build the baseball fields there and I believe the Endangered Species Act was in effect, it’s been since 2008,” she says.
Brousseau also says she could put forward a recommendation for council approval.
“If they do, then the city will do their due diligence and start the process and make sure the grounds are free of endangered species, go through the proper steps,” she says.
A staff report was pulled from Council earlier this month to get updated information, which Brousseau says will help decide how many ice pads are needed.
“It just depends on what that study says, if the study says ‘hey, build three’, then that may rule out some locations because of size,” she tells BayToday.
Brousseau notes that a number of new teams have started playing locally since the last study was done, including the North Bay Battalion and Nipissing Lakers women’s team.
She also says future needs will also have to be taken into consideration.
An updated report is expected within a couple months.

Filed under: arena, Memorial Gardens, Omischl Sports Complex, West Ferris Arena