The City of Kamloops is asking its residents to look to the future as it looks to make headway on its Build Kamloops plan to build more recreational facilities.

It has also launched a new Let’s Talk page to gather feedback around the overall Build Kamloops plan.

“It’s been 20 years since our community chose to become Canada’s Tournament Capital and grew into a premier destination for hosting tournaments and sporting events,” a post on the city website says.

“Now it’s time to think about where we want to go next. Who do we want to be? What do you want to feel when someone mentions our home city? We have the opportunity now to shape who we grow into. So, the sky is the limit. Where would you like to see Kamloops in 15 years?”

That request comes as City Councillors contemplate approving $7-million in short-term borrowing to complete detailed design work for the Kamloops Centre for the Arts, which was identified as the top priority in the City’s Recreation Master Plan.

It is not clear if that request will be approved during the Feb. 6 meeting, but Councillor Dale Bass says appealing to future generations has helped convince some people of the need to build more recreational facilities.

“A lot of people don’t look beyond what they want, so I’ve been trying to bring family into it by saying ‘don’t you want your great grand kids to go skating? Or perform? Or a party?” Bass said during the Jan. 22 Build Kamloops Select Committee meeting.

“If we can incorporate that part of the vision as well somehow so that it becomes personal. It is not just about me, its about my great grandchildren. Do they want to do this too? And I want to have to pay for it because we don’t have the bravery to do it now?”

Councillor Margot Middleton, who is also on the Build Kamloops Committee, added that it is important for people to also consider the economic benefits of building new recreational and arts facilities.

“We talk about yes for our grandchildren, our great grandchildren and probably beyond that, but I also think we need to be very strong in our messaging in our economic spin-off, and the livability that we create for our community,” Middleton said.

“I think that that should be one of our key drivers to why we are doing this.”

According to the latest projections, the Kamloops Centre for the Arts is expected to cost at least $120-million, up from the Nov. 2020 estimate of $90-million because of an increase in construction costs at that time.

An initial referendum to borrow up to $49-million for a $90-million Performing Arts Centre – which would have included a 355-stall underground parkade – was voted down in 2015.

A proposal to borrow up to $45-million for the revised $70-million project with a 70-stall parkade was set to go to a referendum on Apr. 4, 2020, before it was postponed because of COVID-19.

How the Centre for the Arts and other proposed recreational facilities will be paid for is not clear at this time. It will involve the borrowing of money though project proponents have – in the past – said that private sector partnerships and donations will also sought to reduce the burden on taxpayers.

“That is also part of what this validation and detailed design will help us understand. What is the work plan? How much can we get done? What kind of money would we need each year in order to phase that ask of council and the public?” Civic Operations Director Jen Fretz said on NL Newsday.

“The public will have to weigh in in some way shape or form, so this is not council or the committee having approved the build. This is them having recommended that we move to the next stage of the process.”

City council has also given tentative approval to using one per cent or $1.35-million in tax revenue from the 2024 budget to support future debt repayment that would be required to finance the Build Kamloops plan.

In March of last year, the City allocated $1-million of its nearly $15.7-million share of the provincial Growing Communities grant towards the Build Kamloops initiative, with another approximately $4.3-million unallocated at this time.

The City also earmarked $5-million towards the new Summit Drive pedestrian overpass, and $5.4-million towards a new outdoor skating rink at Riverside Park, with both those proposals set to go before the Feb. 6 City Council meeting.

City positioned to take on “responsible debt” to build recreational facilities: Neustaeter

At the Jan. 22 Build Kamloops Committee meeting, Councillor Katie Neustaeter noted the city is well positioned to take on debt to build new recreational facilities.

“Something that I always look for when I’m reviewing grant applications is what position are you in as far as debt that you’re able to take on a significant project like this?” Neustaeter said. “Is our investment good money after bad or good money after good? So thank you [city staff] for putting us in a position where we are ready for good.”

Neustaeter also urged people to not shy away from taking on “responsible debt” to grow the community.

“You cannot grow without taking on responsible debt, you cannot own a home without taking on responsible debt unless you are incredibly fortunate to come from a wealthy family that hands you something, but that is not how it works as a municipality anyway,” Neustaeter said.

“Our neighbours are taking on responsible levels of debt to build what they need to for the future of their cities, and it would irresponsible of us not to. You can’t sit and say ‘great, we have no debt, we’re good to go as a city.”’

The City’s Recreation, Health, and Wellness Supervisor Linda Stride also said last month that the Tournament Capital Centre is being “well-used” by a number of people who had voted against it in the 2003 referendum.

“Many of those who voted against the Tournament Capital Centre being built are many of the people, those older adults, that we’re seeing in the Tournament Capital Centre using the track and are loving it,” Stride said, during a presentation where she said the City was looking at options to add new drop-in space for seniors.

During that Nov. 2003 Tournament Capital Referendum, 54 per cent of Kamloops residents voted in favour of borrowing $37.6-million to fund facilities at McArthur Island Sports and Events Centre, Norbrock Stadium, and the Tournament Capital Centre including Hillside Stadium.

The provincial government contributed $8-million towards these facilities while the federal government added another $2-million.

Ron Fawcett to present during Feb. 6 Council meeting

Kamloops City Councillors are also set to get an update from Ron Fawcett of the Kelson Group – who had pledged to donate between $8-and $10-million towards to a new Performing Arts Centre when plans were first presented five years ago – to the Feb. 6 City Council meeting.

Bass, who put forward the motion to invite Fawcett, says that would allow her and her colleagues to get a first-hand update on the status of the project directly.

“Where we are at with it, what he sees as being potential timelines just so we can start talking to the public about this because we’ve got the video and its great, but we need to start that conversation as well, as I think he’s possibly the best ambassador for this than any one of us,” Bass said.

Bass also put forward a motion to ask the City to begin negotiations with the TNRD to see if residents in the regional district – particularly those in the vicinity of Kamloops – will help pay for a facility that they will benefit from was also approved.

“The reality here is whatever we build, people from outside Kamloops will come to it,” Bass said. “Seems to me they should participate in the creation of it in some way, because they will benefit from it.”

In addition to the Performing Arts Centre, the Build Kamloops plan also includes a new leisure pool on the North Shore, additional ice rinks, and a large curling club facility to accommodate consolidation of both current curling clubs.

“Kamloops needs to take a minute and think about where we’re going to be 20 years from now, and the size we’re going to be, and the facilities that we’re going to want to have and how we are going to achieve those,” Deputy CAO Byron McCorkell said during the Jan. 22 Build Kamloops meeting.

“That was basically the questions we put in front of each one of those targeted [working] groups, so that they could all participate in that sort of scoping [with what] we’re going to try to achieve together as a community.”