Bothwell Arena Saved, Removed From List of Budget Cuts
Youth on the ice for a skills competition at Bothwell Arena during this year’s John Horvat Memorial Tournament – Photo by Angela Van Horn Photography
Ward 3 Councillor Steve Pinsonneault, who represents East Kent including Bothwell, entered a motion at Tuesday’s meeting to have Bothwell Arena removed from a list of proposed service cuts in the 2015 Chatham-Kent Municipal budget.
Representatives from the community of Bothwell have been fighting the proposed closure of their arena following the release of the draft budget. The group held an informal rally at the recent John Horvat Memorial Tournament, and also made a strong presence, and presented at the Chatham budget open house last week.
The proposed cut of Bothwell Arena, which is currently Chatham-Kent’s least utilized ice surface, would have saved the Municipality $78,093 per year.
Councillors on hand spoke of working with community members to find alternative uses, and funding for the area. For 2016, Bothwell’s arena will continue to be funded through the Municipality’s base budget.
Bothwell community leaders have already formed a committee to discuss the use of the Bothwell Area Sports Centre, with their first meeting tentatively scheduled for this Thursday.
Budget deliberations will continue this week and next, with the final night of scheduled meetings for Chatham-Kent council concluding on February 4.
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Councillors do not pat your self on the back for removing this , it should never have been on the list to begin with