The public will have a chance to see some high-level concept plans and have a say on a proposal to expand the Vollmer Centre in LaSalle.
Two public information sessions are planned Monday, June 15, after town council voted at the end of April to allow administration to move ahead with public consultation and detailed design work on a possible expansion.
The Vollmer Centre opened in 2008, offering programming and rental space and including two NHL-sized arenas, a swimming pool, a waterslide, a sauna and hot tub, a fitness centre, and a walking track.
The potential expansion could include the addition of a double gymnasium, dedicated fitness/aerobic room, expanded fitness area and lengthened indoor walking track, senior centre, as well as staff office space.
Therecently completed Culture and Recreation Master Plan identified the need for additional space, as the Vollmer is operating at or near capacity with rising demand across the town, particularly from seniors and fitness users.
Town officials say the Vollmer now sees about one million visits a year.
Deputy Chief Administrative Officer Peter Marra says the public feedback is very important.
“We want to make sure we have things right. We’re hitting the targets that the community expects with respect to programming needs for those particular spaces with respect to which kind of programs they might like with an added gymnasium and what kind of senior programs they might like with adding of a senior centre,” he says.
Marra says it takes time to get through the consultation and design process.
“When we move to construction, if council ever agrees and moves forward with budgeting and puts money aside to build this, we’re looking at a two-year construction window,” he says. “All in all, if everything were to go properly and we had proper funding in place and things of that nature, we’re three to four years out from even being able to occupy.”
The open house is planned for Monday, June 15, from 10 a.m. to 12 p.m. or 4 p.m. to 7 p.m. at the Vollmer Centre at 2121 Laurier Parkway.
The consultation and detail design will take about one year to complete at an estimated cost of $250,000 which will be funded through the Vollmer Culture and Recreation Reserve.
An earlier high-level estimate put the full expansion at $33 to $40 million.
It is anticipated that administration will present a follow-up report, detailed design, updated construction estimates, and a financial plan to the council in 2027 to consider the future direction.
You can leave comments about the Vollmer Centre expansion on PlaceSpeak and answer a survey to share your feedback. Visit www.lasalle.ca/VollmerExpansion for more information.