PICKERING -- A $1-million grant from the Province is being used by the City to expand the Pickering Recreation Complex.
The expansion is going to cost $4.5 million and the work includes two doubles squash courts and three fitness studios.
Sharon Milton, the supervisor, facility programs, said the 18,000-square-foot expansion will increase the size of the complex to 243,000 sq. ft.
The two-storey addition will be along the north wall, near one of the original entrances. About one row of parking will be lost, she noted.
Work will start in June and take about a year.
The fitness studios are needed, she said, because programs are now being held in the banquet halls.
The studios would have spring-loaded floors, along with lighting and sound systems for fitness.
The grant was announced during a ceremony on the second-floor mezzanine, next to a cardio studio.
Pickering Mayor Dave Ryan said the provincial money is “a great investment” and will allow the City to “offer a broader range of services for our residents.”
Ms. Milton said the new fitness studios means spin classes can be offered.
“We can’t accommodate spinning now because we have no place to store the equipment,” she said.
Ajax-Pickering MPP Joe Dickson said, “The $1 million, as of today, is to finish off your expansions costs for the expansion of the Pickering Recreation Complex.”
Pickering-Scarborough East MPP Wayne Arthurs, a former councillor and mayor of Pickering, said there have been “three or four expansions of this facility, in addition to internal retrofits. One would be hard pressed to walk around here and say this building is 25 years old.”
This September marks the 25th anniversary of the rec complex opening.
Mr. Arthurs noted the provincial government has a plan to share surpluses in its budget “with our municipal partners” on “shelf-ready priorities.
“If we have a good year, there’s no reason you shouldn’t have a good year,” Mr. Arthurs said.
Mayor Ryan said, “We did have this ready on the shelf and we were waiting, if you will, for an angel.”
“This is the only building, I believe, that has single squash courts, doubles squash courts, racquetball and tennis courts and they’re booked all the time,” said Tom Quinn, the City’s chief administrative officer.
Ms. Milton said there’s a “huge demand” for doubles squash courts, noting the closest such courts are west of the Don Valley. To the east, the nearest ones are in Kingston, she said.
The doubles courts would allow the squash club to attract new players, while also keeping older members.