27 replies to this topic

[zoomer]

there is so much hot air coming out of the Western communities lately, that frankly I'm taking the attitude that I'm from Missouri. Lets see just one of these monster highrises break ground... The rumours were that this was going to be a first class stadium with relatively large permanent seating, and instead we get another small town stadium.

12 million is a laughable amount, you won't get much for that. Yet the hot air continues "We're going to be the envy of North America," Saunders said. The envy of North America with a 12 million dollar stadium and fieldhouse?! Not even the envy of Central America!!

No, instead we're saving money by "using an economical-style exterior for the field house, similar to the tin-sided Bear Mountain Arena." Nothing says world class like tin! Why do we insist on taking the cheap route all the time?!

[aastra]

Victorians go cheap because they can't get the other municipalities to contribute any money. The other municipalities go cheap because they ARE cheap.

[Ms. B. Havin]

This is unknown territory for me, as I'm not big on sports.

Didn't watch the Olympics at all, for example. I did hear about how few medals overall Canada won, though.

Don't do local team sports, either.

But there are a couple of letters in today's T-C that raise some issues around fitness and how we ensure that our kids have facilities for exercising and training.

Here are the letters -- folks with first-hand experience/ insight, please jump in!

Velodrome demolition a poor decision
Times Colonist
Published: Sunday, August 24, 2008

Silken Laumann wrote recently that Canada doesn't care about sport unless it's a men's professional team sport. West Shore Recreation's recent decision to demolish an existing all-weather field, surrounding velodrome and BMX track to build a semi-pro football stadium and a parking lot, confirms her point.

I help organize a bike club at Margaret Jenkins Elementary that uses the velodrome and BMX track. These facilities are a major draw to bike clubs in several schools. In our club alone, more than 50 boys and girls (75 this year) have blossomed on those facilities in each of the last five years.

These facilities motivate kids to learn skills before they venture out on roads. There are no other facilities like them in the region.


West Shore Recreation has decided to demolish the existing sports field and velodrome at the Juan de Fuca Recreation Centre in favour of a larger stadium. Letter-writers suggest the loss of the current structure will leave a gaping hole in the region's sports facilities.View Larger Image View Larger Image
West Shore Recreation has decided to demolish the existing sports field and velodrome at the Juan de Fuca Recreation Centre in favour of a larger stadium. Letter-writers suggest the loss of the current structure will leave a gaping hole in the region's sports facilities.
Darren Stone, Times Colonist

These facilities are safe, well-used, attract community groups to run the programs, cost nothing to maintain, are in great condition and make money. Never mind the obligation to maintain the legacy of the 1994 Commonwealth Games.

There is an alternative site for the sports field already proposed by Langford.

A parking lot and spectator seats are not an appropriate use for recreation land. Clearly these teams are not economically sustainable or they would not be going after municipal land.

At least two funding municipal councils have questioned their representatives' decision to demolish the velodrome and BMX track, but recreation council reps are not required to listen to them.

Canada has been in a long decline in children's fitness and sport performance. It's decisions like this that do nothing to help.

Lister Farrar
Victoria

The next letter addresses adults being pushed out of a facility -- because a youth group got pushed out of the Velodrome:

Loss of facility will affect other sports groups
Times Colonist
Published: Sunday, August 24, 2008

I am one of more than 50 members of a masters soccer club on the West Shore who have used the facilities at the Juan de Fuca Recreation Centre for the last 30 years. This season we have been told that we have to vacate our established playing time -- at 7 p.m. -- in order to make way for an start-up youth field lacrosse team who want to play under floodlights and have been told they cannot use the Velodrome field.

We fully support youth sport; in fact as part of our commitment to give back to the community our club donates to Kidsport, provides a scholarship to a local high school program, gives a number of new bicycles and equipment to needy children at Christmas and members volunteer at the Paul Valentine Memorial Tournament.

We also host an annual international soccer tournament on the Labour Day weekend which sees upwards of 20 teams coming into the capital region and supporting local businesses.

We feel, as a group, let down by the powers that be who are buckling under pressure from a new user group that has several high profile local politicians as supporters.

Not only will this decision affect our club, but also the hundreds of other masters players who come out to play us as part of the Southern Vancouver Island Classics Soccer Association and it will affect the social aspect of our club that has historically been a strong reason for our continued membership.

This one decision in favour of a new organization could well spell the end of an established one.

Rob Patten
Juan de Fuca Masters Football Club
Victoria

And finally, a letter that addresses the Olympic rowers and their facility at Elk Lake:

Rowers deserve a better training facility
Times Colonist
Published: Sunday, August 24, 2008

Congratulations to the Canadian rowers who have made us so proud during the Beijing Olympics. And shame on us for providing them with such a lousy venue in which to train.

The cox of the men's eight was interviewed and spoke about the "shed" at Elk Lake that was the worst facility of all the countries that had entrants in rowing.

We owe our men and women a decent facility and time on the lake when they can be on their own to practice, or at least a part of the lake that is theirs only for practice at any time.

The "shed" should be transformed into a proper facility with a weight room, a training room and good, clean change rooms. I don't know much else they would need -- but that would be a good start and the rowers should be consulted about their requirements.

That way we would be treasuring the athletes we expect to perform -- and they do, Olympics after Olympics -- even with the dump we provide for them.

But they must feel pretty undervalued. We cheer for them when they win at the Olympics, ignore the world championships, and give them a crappy place to train.

Time to change. Time to value our people who train on Elk Lake. Time to stop taking them for granted.

Salome Waters
Victoria

On a related note, there's a UN report out, on which the T-C ran a commentary today, Rich countries, troubled kids. It notes that:

one in five Canadian kids aged 13 to 15 admits to being overweight.

After the U.S., that's the highest percentage of any country in the study, and likely in the world. Yet that's only how many children acknowledge they have a weight problem: The actual number is far higher.

So it's not like we're doing well in terms of child welfare and can afford to eliminate or fail to upkeep athletic facilities, either.

Incidentally, that report had another interesting statistic. Sweden and Greece are two countries that do far better than Canada in terms of having healthier, better-adjusted/happier children (ditto Hungary and Italy), not least because in those countries, kids spend time with adults and actually eat dinner together as a family. But get this: while 40% of Canadian kids smoke pot, only 5% of Swedish and Greek kids do. Sweden has a low tolerance for "recreational" drugs and aggressively goes after dealers (law) and drug users (detox), and marijuana is considered a gateway drug. That all sounds so hopelessly retardataire and old fashioned, doesn't it? I used to think so, but after being back in Canada and seeing open drug use everywhere, I've switched sides. As for legalizing drugs (usually based on some specious argument about how poorly the US is doing in getting drugs under control), count me out. Sometimes tolerance isn't all it's cracked up to be.

[Mike K.]

...while 40% of Canadian kids smoke pot, only 5% of Swedish and Greek kids do.

Don't Europeans smoke cigarettes like the dickens?

[Ms. B. Havin]

^ From my observations, on the Continent, the northern and western countries are increasingly more smoke-free, but the further east you go (ex-Communist states), the more smokers you'll find. The English are a class onto themselves: smokers. Don't know about Greece, but I don't remember that it was obnoxious.

[VicHockeyFan]

^ How FEW medals we won?

We won 18, that would put us in 14th place in the world. That for a country that is 36th in the world in terms of population.

The USA only got 110, with ten times our population.

This was our second-best haul ever from non-boycotted games (Atlanta, 1996, 22 medals).

[martini]

Velodrome closes over insurance concerns
Safety issues spur surprise move at track that's slated for replacement

Bill Cleverley
Times Colonist

Saturday, August 30, 2008


Under a $5-million plan, the Juan de Fuca velodrome is to be replaced with an all-weather field and stadium. But Metchosin Mayor John Ranns has promised a proposal that could save the facility.

The last wheel may have turned on the Juan de Fuca velodrome as the operators, faced with a damning insurance report, have shut the oval down.

The surprise closure Thursday caught some cyclists unaware. They showed up for regular racing in the evening but were met by a chain fence.

West Shore Parks and Recreation society administrator Linda Barnes said the board had no choice.

"The surprise that came yesterday was a recommendation which they deemed critical. And the critical recommendation was immediate closure and security for the entire velodrome facility," Barnes said.

WSPR has a $5-million plan to replace the velodrome and BMX track with an all-weather field and stadium, and about 400 more parking spaces. But it has faced delays due to opposition from Metchosin Mayor John Ranns and a lawsuit filed by the GVVA. Both want the track saved.

Worried about its liability because of the deteriorating condition of the infield, WSPR has shut off use of the infield since the first week of August. The board contracted the independent engineering report on the entire facility recommendation of its insurer.

While the concrete track is in fairly good repair, the independent audit turned up a number of deficiencies ranging from exposed electrical outlets to weathered plywood panelling that has been fitted onto the rail ringing the track to exposed infield seams -- all leading to the recommendation of closure, Barnes said.

"Their major thing was the infield and the usage of the track while there were certain things happening in the infield," Barnes said.

"They said that at this point the field is in such poor condition they wouldn't want a cyclists to run down onto it."

The assessment of the infield was that it "is in very poor condition" with most of the seams separated.

Greater Victoria Velodrome Association president Chris Anstey, reached in Burnaby where he had been racing on the indoor track there, said the closure was "disappointing" for him, personally, and for GVVA which had events scheduled through September.

"I'm still trying to train for the World Masters which is the second week of October in Sydney, Australia. Tickets are bought and everything. So it's going to be difficult to get my training times in -- any training on the track in. I can do some of it on the road but can't do it all," Anstey said.

Meanwhile, Ranns was annoyed yesterday that he couldn't get a copy of the insurance audit. When he called WSPR he was told Metchosin's two representatives on WSPR had been issued copies and he could get it through them. However, neither of Metchosin's representatives were available.

"The fact they wouldn't give our administrator a copy of the insurance and insisted on this other ridiculous thing is totally unprofessional and is not the way business gets conducted between parties," he said.

He said Metchosin will be submitting a proposal on Tuesday that he said could save the velodrome and provide a new all-weather field for WSPR at far less cost.

WSPR chairman Mark Cardinal said the board was following proper process in releasing the report to board members. He said Ranns had tried to get a copy prior to its release to the board by phoning the inspector.

"The board commissioned that report. Not John Ranns and not Metchosin. There's due process here and he stepped outside the bounds of due process," Cardinal said.

bcleverley@tc.canwest.com
© Times Colonist (Victoria) 2008


http://www.canada.co...db-89d96d09197d

*I noticed Mike had a thread on the velodrome as well. Not sure if you want to blend them.
http://vibrantvictor...light=velodrome

[victorian fan]

Regional recreation pass program permanent
VicNews January 06, 2010
http://www.bclocalne...y/80824122.html

Making recreation passes portable turned out to be a good idea.

A pilot project to create a regional pass accepted at all area recreation centres showed high enough usage across Greater Victoria to prompt making the option permanent.[...]