Tuesday November 30, 2021 | COLWOOD, BC
by Mary P Brooke, Editor | Island Social Trends
There was time during the pandemic to plan and build some new things at West Shore Parks & Recreation (WSPR)’s main building — the Juan de Fuca (JDF) building on Island Highway in Colwood.
With downtime while public access was not allowed for most of 2020, then limited to certain capacities by public health order in 2021, the WSPR board got busy with strategizing and realizing the future that lay ahead.
So next week, the west shore will see West Shore Parks & Recreation Society officially opening their new JDF Childcare Centre (CCC) and JDF Arena after completing $5 million in major capital renovations.
Provincial grant funding:
With $3.9 million in grant funding from the Ministry of Children and Family Development and the Union of British Columbia Municipalities, renovations were completed on the upper JDF Recreation Centre to build the new JDF Childcare Centre.
Child care centre:
Included in the beautifully-renovated childcare space are 24 new full-time daycare and 30 new preschool spaces (for children 30 months to 5 years); and 40 new after-school care spaces.
As well, additional amenities specific to childcare licensing include: a new outdoor playpark, a commercial kitchen fully accessible washroom facilities and upgrades to the existing elevator.
Arena:
The JDF Arena upgrades were completed in September. That project was made possible through a successful provincial infrastructure grant application through the Ministry of Transportation and Infrastructure.
In total, $1,298,271 in grant funding and $700,000 from WSPR’s capital reserve contributed to upgrades including: the replacement of the refrigerated floor, addition of a heat recovery condenser, new dasher boards, new spectator seating, players benches moved to the spectator side of the arena, fresh flooring and paint.
Board commends staff:
Society Board Chair Kyara Kahakauwila said in a release today: “The Society Board would like to recognize the tremendous effort our staff displayed as they secured grant funding, through to the completion of these two major projects. Projects that were completed during the pandemic no less.”
“These new upgrades will provide critical childcare spaces for our growing community and much needed renovations to the JDF Arena that will benefit our many user organizations and the public. As Board Chair, I extend my gratitude to the team for their successful completion of these critical projects.”
Ribbon cutting & free public skate:
Getting back to in-person events even though the pandemic continues (following all public health guidelines), a ribbon-cutting ceremony will be held on Monday December 6 at the entrance to the two facilities within the JDF Childcare Centre and the JDF Arena. That will be followed by VIP and media tours of the new spaces, coffee and treats.
There will then be a free public skate from 10:30 am to 11:20 am on the new JDF Arena ice.
WSPR staff will be following all public health guidelines to ensure everyone’s safety.
