Soccer dome a possibility for new Chatham park
Is an indoor soccer dome a possibility for Chatham?
With the creation of a new regional park near St. Clair College, Chatham-Kent mayor Darrin Canniff said they are looking and working toward the creation of an indoor soccer dome at the park.
“That’s one thing we need in Chatham-Kent. Anybody in the winter time that plays soccer or any summer sports has to go to Windsor or London to experience that, we want that right here,” Canniff said publicly during the Wallaceburg and District Chamber Breakfast with the Mayor event, held on April 3 in Wallaceburg.
Canniff told Chatham-Kent Sports Network that if it was just his decision, the indoor soccer dome would be built.
He said he expects the indoor soccer dome to come to council for discussion in the near future. Canniff said an indoor soccer dome is needed in the region.
“We’ve needed that facility for years and I want to see something (in the winter) for people that are in soccer, football, baseball to have a facility indoors.”
The park, which is located on Bear Line Road, is across from St. Clair College which donated 20 acres of land to the municipality.
The first phase of the park includes a tennis dome, which is being built and operated by a private group.
Canniff said the park is the population centre of Chatham-Kent. Other preliminary plans for the park include pickleball courts, a cricket field and possibly a new baseball field.
“It’s a wonderful spot, …it’s on donated land, and we’re using a lot of Hydro One money to pay for that as well. It’s a huge success story in so many ways. Its bringing things to our community that are not otherwise here.”
Sarnia has looked into building an indoor facility for decades. A feasibility study done by the city in 2022 said it could cost range from $26.4 million to $33.3 million depending on the size of the building.
There has been discussions in Sarnia about building a simpler building that would cost close to $4 million and wouldn’t be as large and not have as many bells and whistles as a building that would include a full-size soccer field.
An indoor sports facility could serve as a community hub for local sports and leisure activities, help youth (and others) develop skills and foster active lifestyles, support multiple uses, accommodate expanded community and city programming, allow for year-round use, strengthen sport tourism
There’s a question, as with all municipal investments, is whether an indoor sports facility would be financially responsible and affordable for Chatham-Kent residents.
Canniff said the municipality will look into sponsorships to help pay for a portion of the dome, as well as relying on money from Hydro One, which provided the municipality with $10 million in 2022, as part of 10-year community support agreement between Chatham-Kent and Hydro One. The agreement provides the region with direct community support as part of Hydro One’s transmission infrastructure expansion in the region.