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County learns field house a long way off

Building a new field house in Ponoka may be something that will take some years before completion.

Ponoka County councillors heard from the chairman of the Ponoka Recreation Committee firsthand that the multiplex field house the town is striving for may not even be plausible in the next decade.

Chairman Peter Hall briefed the county councillors during their regular meeting on Tuesday, May 12 saying while the field house is one of the biggest wants of the community, it would take a long time to realize.

In 2007 the Town of Ponoka released a needs analysis study to the community. “And it was a really, really good study,” said Hall.

In 2011 and a year and a half ago the study was updated and on the top of the wish list was the field house.

“That needs assessment took me totally by surprise in 2007,” said county CAO Charlie Cutforth. He says about 186 county residents responded to the survey and the biggest want that seemed to be coming out of the county was also a field house.

Hall says as the town moves forward with the field house,  a plan is imperative. In the next three to four months an architect firm will be brought in. “They’ll give us an understanding of some options,” he explained.

From there, the rec committee will have sufficient information to take back to the county and present a game plan.

Hall feels even the idea of a field house could bring all the recreational organizations in the community together to take a more “holistic” approach at their operations. In working together, rather than always competing for the same dollar, Hall believes it could save everybody money in the long run. “It has to become a partnership,” he said.

“Barry (Neath, the former chairman) used to speak, we need to get a heart in our town. Somewhere along the way we lost the heart and I’d like to put it back in,” said Hall.

He told councillors expecting and construction by the next election is an impossibility. “But we need a plan,” he stressed.