The deadline for bid submissions for the construction services work on the Pat Duke Arena Change Room Renovation and Expansion project has now passed, and RDNO staff are in the process of reviewing the five (5) submissions that were received for cost and conformance of all of the bid requirements.
“I’m pleased to see that the project received interest from the construction community,” said Rick Fairbairn, Area D Director, RDNO. “We are looking forward to awarding the project and seeing the work get underway.”
The project was issued for procurement on January 31, 2020, with a closing date of March 5, 2020. The bids were read publicly on March 5 and all were within the $3 million budget.
Work includes reinforcement of the existing arena arched structure, as well as a full suite of four newly constructed change rooms, a north warming and viewing area, entryway and modest improvements to existing change rooms.
When the successful proponent is selected, the RDNO will provide another update.
Background
The Pat Duke Memorial Arena provides ice time for a variety of users, including minor hockey, figure skating, ringette and leisure ice uses, and has been serving the community since 1967.
Unfortunately, due to its age, the needs of all of the facility users are not being met. Due to an insufficient number of change rooms, female ice users have had to use inadequate facilities during co-ed play. The arena also poses challenges for users with mobility issues and does not meet today’s standards for accessibility.
As part of a community effort that began in 2016, residents and users came together and initiated fundraising to improve amenities in the arena. As a result of these efforts, Lumby won Kraft Hockeyville 2016, receiving $100,000 to put towards improving the facility.
Leveraging the community momentum that was generated through the successful Kraft Hockeyville win, in March 2018 the Village of Lumby and the Regional District of North Okanagan (RDNO) were awarded an additional $2,595,625 million dollars to make improvements to the Pat Duke Arena in Lumby, B.C. Additional funding for the project included a grant from TELUS, and community fundraising totalling $75,000, and $230,000 provided by the RDNO through the White Valley Parks, Recreation and Culture service
The $3 M project is focused on adding four new change rooms and renovating the existing change rooms, but will also include upgrades to make the facility more operationally effective, safe, and energy-efficient.
The funding for this project has enabled a significant renovation and expansion to this cherished community arena, allowing it to continue to serve the North Okanagan well into the future.