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Castlegar Recreation Commission moving forward with fitness expansion

The Castlegar Recreation Commission is moving forward with plans to expand fitness facilities at the Castlegar & District Community Complex.

The Castlegar & District Recreation Commission is moving forward with plans to expand fitness facilities at the Castlegar & District Community Complex.

Minutes from a meeting of the recreation commission held Feb. 9 were included in the agenda for the Regional District of Kootenay Columbia’s (RDCK) meeting last Thursday, and revealed that the commission voted to dedicate funds from the Castlegar & District Aquatic & Fitness 2016 budget to developing plans for a fitness expansion in 2017. The expansion came about as a result of the Castlegar, Area I & J Recreation Master Plan, which calls for a five-level upgrade to the complex. The first level is a weights and fitness addition that will cost an estimated $4,219,800.

“In terms of priorities from the public, expanding the fitness area was one of the highest,” explained Joe Chirico, general manager of community services for the RDCK. “So the commission wants to investigate what that could look like and then be able to check with the public about what their thoughts are on that specific piece from the Master Plan process.”

The February commission meeting also included a small update on the Pioneer Arena. Staff are to prepare a report of the options for the arena, listing the determining factors that would lead to it closing. Closing the Pioneer Arena was also addressed in the Master Plan, which states that “the Pioneer Arena is nearing the end of its useful life and should be decommissioned once it is deemed unsafe.”