Battleford, Poundmaker Cree Nation partner on outdoor sports park development

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“The purpose is to work together for future economic development projects,” said Chief Duane Antoine of Poundmaker Cree Nation. “It is so important for us as First Nation people to work together as a nation, and a non-First Nation. That will go a long way for everybody,” he said.  

'THAT WILL GO A LONG WAY FOR EVERYBODY'

Battleford, Poundmaker Cree Nation partner on outdoor sports park development

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He hopes the partnership will continue beyond his time as Chief.  

Battleford Mayor Ames Leslie said the project is a shared effort, with the land coming in part from the town as well as the RM of Battle River. 

“There will have to be service agreements moving forward, as they keep it as Treaty Land Entitlement (TLE). When that happens, you have to enter an agreement with a municipality for fire and police services because Treaty land does not have that. Part of today is just opening that door to have those discussions and work towards being good neighbours,” said Leslie.  

Leslie hopes this new development will complement the existing Flats in the town. He notes that soccer, softball, and baseball are the fastest growing sports in the Battlefords.  

“All three of them are low-cost investments for parents to put their children into. So, I think as this progresses and grows, it will only complement our ability to bring large scale tournaments to our community.” 

Moving forward, the economic development partnership between the two entities will expand, one thing they hope to see in the coming future is a town hotel.  

“It’s something we have opened the door to have conversations with whoever is willing to have it,” Leslie said. “It’s one of the biggest gaps the town of Battleford has, is not having that hotel. Having a hotel in our community would be a great benefit to everybody.” 

There is currently no official timeline for the outdoor park project, however Coun. Antoine hopes to have parts of the campground complete before the Tony Cote Summer Games at the end of July.

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Alyssa.rudolph@pattisonmedia.com

With files from battlefordsNOW’s Ryan Lambert – Ryan.lambert@pattisonmedia.com