A rendering of the multiplex and arena concept exterior. (City of Meadow Lake website)

By Angela Brown

Capital project

Meadow Lake plans for ground-breaking ceremony for new arena and multiplex

Jul 12, 2023 | 12:45 PM

The City of Meadow Lake is getting closer to seeing construction start for the new $51-million arena multiplex facility.

Mayor Merlin Seymour said the Meadow Lake Recreation and Civic Centre Project (MLRC) work will get started soon.

“We’re hoping to see a bit of traffic coming into the area,” he said. “They will be mobilizing, starting to work on the grounds.”

Plans are to have an official ground-breaking ceremony early in September, when more people will be able to attend the event.

“A lot of people head away on vacations [in the summer]. So, we want to do it in the early part of September to have an official ground-breaking, to have as many people there as possible,” Seymour said.

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The mayor is excited about the project.

“People have been wondering what has been going on, so things are going to be happening in the next week,” he said. “You’ll be seeing some activity around there. I’m really looking forward to working with Quorex Construction – the contractor for us – on this project. It’s a very good thing for our community.”

The city is asking the public to stay away from the construction area and follow all safety regulations.

The city says the remains of the old arena are being removed. Quorex Construction crews will be undertaking the preparation work at the site over the next couple of weeks. Fencing is being installed and some early groundwork will be started around the end of July.

Workun Garrick Partnership is the design partner on the project.

Open house

The city said in a release July 5, Workun Garrick is currently finalizing the facility design. The public will see some new renderings of the design at an open house planned for this fall.

When complete, the new facility will house an NHL-size arena, administration space, and a field house. The project construction is scheduled to be completed by March 31, 2025, based on current timelines.

The total budget for this jointly-funded project is currently at $51.83 million.

In the fall of 2022, the city received confirmation of investments from the federal government (up to $14,932,023) and the province (up to $12,442,108) to help it build the new facility. The total investment under the Investing in Canada Infrastructure Program (ICIP), including the city’s portion under the grant, is $37.3 million.

Most of the city’s funding is expected to come from insurance proceeds following a fire in 2021 at the previous Meadow Lake and District Arena. City council committed an additional $5 million when applying for Investing in Canada Infrastructure Program (ICIP) funding, and another $9.5 million on May 8.

The R.M. of Meadow Lake is also providing support for the project.

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Angela.Brown@pattisonmedia.com

On Twitter: @meadowlakenow