Banff politicians have said no to spending $1.4 million to help fund a high school-sized gymnasium as part of the redevelopment of Banff Elementary School, but did approve $286,000 to build amenity spaces for the gym.
The $286,000 will go towards building showers and storage space at the facility in 2018, to coincide with the redevelopment to take place at the school by Canadian Rockies Public Schools (CRPS).
Officials say the new gym, which will be available for community use, will still be bigger than the existing one, but it will be a junior high-sized facility instead of a high school-collegiate-sized gym.
Councillor Brian Standish was the only councillor in favour of spending the $1.4 million to get a high school-sized gymnasium, but other councillors said there was a long list of recreation projects coming forward and existing gyms are not at capacity.
“Now would be a prime opportunity to do it,” said Standish. “I would like to see it now. We’re not going to get another chance like this.”
But Mayor Karen Sorensen was hesitant to support $1.4 million, saying there are many recreation projects expected to be coming forward for council’s consideration.
“It’s $1.4 million. It’s not a small expenditure,” she said.
“If I was to even consider a larger gym right now I’m not making a decision with full information because I don’t know what else is coming to council. I don’t know what I’m prioritizing against.”
CRPS offered the Town of Banff the opportunity to be a partner in expanding the size of the gymnasium at Banff Elementary School to a high-school-collegiate sized gymnasium, complete with showers and storage space.
The redevelopment of Banff Elementary School is currently in the design phase.
First phase funding has been approved and CRPS has been short-listed for the second round of funding. The school division is hoping to submit its development permit application within the next two months.
“Were ready to start drawing,” said Ken Riordan, CRPS facilities manager. “It’s taken us two years to get to this point and we’re ready to go.”
Like many communities, Banff relied on the use of school gymnasiums at the elementary and high schools through formal joint use agreements. Banff also has access to The Banff Centre’s gym on much the same basis as towns and cities with college and university campuses.
A multi-purpose gymnasium and fitness facility has been identified for phase three of The Fenlands, however, there is no schedule for the next phase.
“All three gymnasiums currently have capacity to accommodate increased community use and programming,” said Mary Brewster, the Town of Banff’s recreation manager.
Brewster said the Town of Banff will sit down with CRPS to discuss a joint use agreement for the elementary gym, including the way both the high school and elementary gyms are scheduled.
“We need to make sure the right activities are going in at the right places,” she said.
The Town of Banff is also spending $503,240 to build space to accommodate the out-of-school program as part of the elementary school redevelopment. It was initially slated for 2015, but is now on the books for 2018.
Last year, council approved $881,000 to accommodate the out-of-school program, plus relocation of the Parent Link program from the senior’s centre at 101 Bear St. to the elementary school.
However, updated budgets show it would cost more than $1.3 million to provide space for both programs. The plan is to now investigate capital costs to keep Parent Link at 101 Bear St.
