ISSUE #6, MAY 17, 2007
Regional Sports & Entertainment Centre Update
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This is a brief update on the Kingston Regional Sports and Entertainment Centre. These updates will be issued to you on a monthly basis and can be used for circulation to your membership.
Grand Opening
Arcturus SMG is working on the Grand Opening Month event calendar which will include a variety of paid and non-paid admission activities. Based upon commitments made by Ellis Don, it is expected that the facility will be commissioned and ready to open by January 15. Preliminary details of the opening weekend activities may see a Public Preview/Opening Ceremony event held free to the public on January 17 followed by a Frontenacs vs. Ottawa hockey game on January 18. Other events will be confirmed by Arcturus SMG in the coming weeks.
Construction Update
EllisDon has been working on structural steel and will continue over the next months to make progress on structural steel. Excavation planned for the north east corner of the site will be postponed as EllisDon is currently using this area as an entrance to the site for sub trades and material deliveries.
The City has been informed by EllisDon and Benson Steel that the steel erection is about four weeks behind schedule due to a delay in cutting and shaping the steel at the manufacturer. The revised schedule is showing that the structural steel should be completed by July 24. EllisDon is still committing to a schedule providing for an operational facility on January 15, 2008. The City, PMX, EllisDon and Benson Steel will continue to try to find ways to shorten the delay in steel erection.
Beginning Tuesday, May 22, Ontario Street (southbound) will reduced to from two southbound lanes to one southbound lane between Place D'Armes and Barrack St. and experience traffic delays while crews work at the east section of the sports and entertainment site.
Fundraising Campaign
The fundraising campaign launch was held on May 1 at Memorial Hall, City Hall. Honourary co-chairs, Olympian Jayna Hefford and Brit Smith were announced at the launch. Mayor Harvey Rosen, Chair of the Campaign, also revealed the campaign logo and slogan "Let's Build the Kingston Regional Sports and Entertainment Centre Together". Over $300,000 in pledges and donations were announced at the launch.
Individuals and companies donating to the project can choose to provide general contributions or request that their contributions be assigned to a specific area:
- A LEED Canada Facility
- Sports and Military Heritage
- Special Community Features
- Public Art Areas
- Community Suite
- Community Billboard
- Outside benches
- Recognition Program
Campaign brochures and magnets will be distributed through various businesses within the City. Brochures will provide more information on the project and donation/recognition opportunities. Individuals will be able to purchase campaign magnets which will contribute to the fundraising goal. The public will also be invited to participate to the campaign in various ways:
- Initiate a family or neighbourhood project.
- Put their name or the name of someone In Memoriam on a seat for $500.
- Choose the part of the Centre that most appeals to them and have their donations directed towards that area.
- Design a special business promotion to support the Centre.
- Retail establishments may sell campaign magnets for $5 each to raise funds or order their own merchandise with the campaign logo.
- Service Clubs may develop a joint project with other clubs in the region to support the project.
- Sports clubs may design their own projects.
Donations and contributions will be recognized as follows:
- All donations will be acknowledged in writing.
- All donors will receive a certificate signed by the Honourary co-chairs Jayna Hefford and Brit Smith at the conclusion of the campaign early next year.
- Donations of $10 and above will receive a receipt for tax purposes from the City of Kingston.
- All gifts of $100 and above will be recognized on the permanent donor area on the Main Floor of the Centre.
- Gifts may be pledged over a three-year period.
- The wishes of donors who want to remain anonymous will be respected.
The City currently has a total of $326,000 in donations and pledges to the project. Donations can be made at the campaign office which is located on the main floor at City Hall.
Mechanical Noise Study
The Planning Department and Valcoustics Canada have provided comments on the mechanical noise report. EllisDon is accountable to meet this Ministry of Environment regulation under the design build contract. The MOE regulation calls for a maximum of 50 dBA in areas of reception between 7 am and 7 pm; maximum of 47 dBA in areas of reception between 7 pm and 11 pm; and 45 dBA in areas of reception between 11 pm and 7 am.
MOE defines points of reception as: permanent or seasonal residences, hotels/motels, nursing/retirement homes, rental residences, hospitals, camp grounds, and noise sensitive buildings such as schools and places of worship. There are two points of reception near the Sports & Entertainment Centre: Frontenac Village Condominium Corporation and the Frontenac residences. The report provided by State of the Art Acoustik shows that the sound level is below MOE regulations at all points of reception areas, except for a small area around the Frontenac residences during daytime at 25 feet. EllisDon and State of the Art Acoustik have been asked to revise this area.
Interior Acoustics
State of the Art Acoustik retained by EllisDon recently submitted an acoustics report for the Sports and Entertainment Centre. The acoustics report indicated that the expected reverberation time with a fully occupied facility is 2.8 seconds. The State of the Art Acoustics report is currently being peer reviewed by Valcoustics Canada. The peer review will provide information on the appropriate acoustics and provide recommendations to achieve the appropriate level of acoustics.
In its proposal, EllisDon indicated that they are taking the same design approach for the Sports and Entertainment Centre as they did for the John Labatt Centre, the Air Canada Centre and General Motors Place.
City staff have been meeting with members of the community to discuss the acoustics concerns.
Contact
If you have any questions regarding the Kingston Regional Sports and Entertainment Centre please contact Lanie Hurdle, director of project development at 613-546-4291 ext. 1231 or by e-mail at lhurdle@cityofkingston.ca.
