Lunchtime and weekend skates at the Civic Centre may soon be free, at least for the rest of the ice season.
At their next regular meeting on Monday March 8, Sackville town councillors will consider a motion to waive fees for five lunchtime skates per week, as well as a Sunday family skate. In addition, they will consider adding two new free skates to the schedule, one for seniors on Wednesday mornings, and one for parents and tots on Friday mornings.
The proposal from staff comes after Councillor Mike Tower suggested waiving the fees for public skates at last month’s regular council meeting.
Recreation director Matt Pryde told council the town would lose about $1500 in revenue if the change were in place for a full year. The recommendation to be considered Monday just applies to the remainder of this year’s ice season, which Pryde says could cost about $500. But, he says there’s evidence that it could be worth it.
“There’s been plenty of studies out there that have shown that one of the biggest barriers to being physically active is cost,” said Pryde on Monday. “So by removing that barrier, council could potentially be increasing the opportunity for our residents to be more physically active, which would in turn help improve their mental health, which is especially important given the current COVID-19 environment we’re all living in.”
The ice season in the Civic Centre normally ends at the end of March, but Matt Pryde says it may get extended this year.
Because of the short period of time left in the ice season, Councillor Mike Tower suggested that the waiving of fees might be extended right through to next year’s ice season. Councillors Shawn Mesheau and Bruce Phinney agreed.
CAO Jamie Burke noted that a larger reconsideration of the subsidies for ice users in general is on staff’s radar for the summer, in advance of the fall ice season.
Council will consider the recommendation to waive daily skate fees for the remainder of the year at their meeting Monday, March 8.
