Prince George's local minor hockey and figure skating organizations say they were sideswiped by the city's announcement on Tuesday that city arenas would be closed indefinitely.
Prince George Minor Hockey Association president Glynis Vennberg and Northern B.C Centre for Skating past president Renee Hampole said the announcement came as a total surprise to their organizations.
"Today’s City of Prince George announcement to keep arenas closed indefinitely is devastating to the youth of Prince George and all surrounding northern communities. It is especially disappointing when northern B.C. has gone 36 consecutive days without a positive COVID 19 case," Vennberg said in a statement issued on Tuesday. "Having reached out to our points of contact within the City of Prince George consistently since March, the sudden news of indefinite rink closures without notice, consultation or communication is shocking."
The Prince George Minor Hockey Association is one of the biggest arena user groups in the city, Vennberg said. In 2019-2020, the organization spent $585,000 on ice rental from the city.
On June 15, city council received a report saying safety plans for the arenas were under development and arenas would open in August for training camps. Since June, volunteers and staff with the minor hockey association have logged hundreds of hours preparing for a safe minor hockey season – including submitting return-to-play plans to the city, she said.
"Prince George Minor Hockey registration numbers are on par with this time last year. These members have registered with very little documentation, faithfully looking forward to a modified season of hockey," Vennberg said. "The impacts of the arena closures on school programming, school registration, billet families, etc. will be significant. All hockey in northern B.C. will be driven out of the north."
Families are already looking outside Prince George for alternative places for their children to play, so they don't lose an entire season of development, Vennberg said.
"These are dollars that should be staying within our community to keep our economy going," she said. "This travel increases the risk of exposure to COVID-19 and the risk of bringing the virus back to our community."
Hampole said the sudden move by the city could threaten the survival of groups like the Northern B.C. Centre for Skating.
"The announcement yesterday that the arenas will remain closed came as quite a shock," Hampole said in a statement issued on Wednesday. "The city did not provide an opportunity for consultation with user groups prior to this announcement. This news is devastating for long standing non-profit youth based ice sport organizations that have been operating in our community for years – some of which will struggle to continue to provide programming or possibly not recover at all after a prolonged facility closure."
The group has been providing basic skating and figure skating programs in Prince George for 43, she said.
"It is important to note that we are currently standing at 36 consecutive days without a positive COVID-19 case in the Northern Health Authority," Hampole said. "Communities with active cases in our Province have re-opened their arenas successfully, some for up to four weeks now. Return to Play Guidelines are in place to provide a safe return to the ice. We submitted our plan to the city for our safe return to the ice weeks ago."
The group has been providing online training for athletes, but the off-ice programs are no substitute for hitting the ice, she said.
"One area of major concern is losing our highly trained professional coaching team, because they will be forced to seek employment opportunities elsewhere. This team has taken years to come together and will be impossible to replace," Hampole said. "In addition, there are many local businesses that have been built to support ice sports in our community and the northern region. Will they be forced to shut down with the announcement of a prolonged closure?"
If minor sports organizations fail, families will leave or not chose to move to Prince George, because there isn't the opportunities for their kids, she added.
"With this decision, our city council has failed the legacy of the Canada Winter Games and the youth in our community," Hampole said. "It’s a sad day for our community."
COUGARS STILL 'BUSINESS AS USUAL'
A decision by the City of Prince George to close its arenas won't have any immediate impact on the Prince George Cougars, a spokesperson for the WHL team said.
Fraser Rodgers, Cougars manager of broadcasting, marketing and public relations, said the team is still planning on starting training camps on Sept. 15. The Cougars are slated to begin their regular season on Oct. 2, unless they hear otherwise from the WHL.
"Really, at this time of year, it's business as usual for us," Rodgers said. "It's a very fluid situation for sports all around the world right now. We're just in a holding pattern, waiting for the league (to finalize plans)."
The team's management are in close and regular communication with the staff at CN Centre and the city as they plan for the 2020-21 season, he said.
The Cougars Summer Hockey School, which was slated to run this August for players aged 7 to 12, is being restructured, Rodgers said. Instead of an intensive, full-week program, the Cougars plan to offer shorter evening courses throughout the hockey season.
Prince George Spruce Kings general manager Mike Hawes declined to comment about the announcement Tuesday.
