By CHERYL BRINK This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it

Posted 14 hours ago

CORNWALL — The city’s football club might be a step closer to finding a new home.

On Friday, the budget steering committee approved a $150,000 study on the Bob Turner Arena and Joe St. Denis field, with plans to spend another $150,000 to demolish the building next year.

Planning, parks and recreation manager Stephen Alexander said they hope a consultant will provide direction for the site that will better accommodate the football program.

“The outcome of that ... might lead us into detail of demolition of the arena and we’ll do a total redevelopment of the area,” he said.

But Coun. Andre Rivette suggested the report look at other site options as well, such as areas near the Benson Centre or Optimist Park.

Coun. Syd Gardiner recommended the old railway site behind the Benson Centre.

“If it was cleaned up and used for football, that would be perfect,” he said.

But Alexander noted any switches among current football or soccer fields wouldn’t meet the demand for additional space, and he cautioned against using the rail site. He also said since the Bob Turner area is surplus, it should be seriously considered as a permanent home for the athletic program.

“In my view it serves a number of purposes as park space, and it should remain a park space,” he said.

“If this report can help us plan ... then I think it’s worth it,” agreed Coun. Bernadette Clement.

The $150,000 report was one of several items in the parks and recreation department’s list of capital projects for 2012.

Division manager Christine Lefebvre also detailed proposals for new skylights at the civic complex and improvements to the bike path.

A $50,000 playground structure at Meadowvale Park is also on the agenda for this year, but Lefebvre said they had to cut out a second replacement at Menard Park due to constraints.

“We do have a master plan for playground structures that (recommends) we should replace two a year,” she said. “But as the budget stands, we can only do one this year.”

Several requests from the city’s waterfront development committee were included in the department’s priorities, including a new boat launch at Guindon Park and rest stops along the recreation trail.

The waterfront changes come with a $30,000 price tag.

“They could be characterized as incremental improvements,” said Alexander.

The budget committee agreed to the capital projects, and sent the recommendations to full council for final approval.