Soccer Northwest pitches alternative turf sports facility plan

Soccer Northwest Ontario (SNO) is taking another kick at a proposed indoor turf sports facility.

The organization has developed a new proposal, which would see a hangar-type facility built next to the Thunder Bay Community Auditorium and Canada Games Complex.

SNO president Michael Veneziale said the group looked back at previous attempts to build a turf sports facility, and tried to address the sticking points in the new plan.

City council has voted in favour of a turf sports facility, and had even picked a site at Chapples Park.

However, in July, councillors voted to hold off on advancing the project, which essentially transferred any further decisions to the new council, members of which will officially be sworn in later this month.

As for the facility itself, Veneziale said SNO's design as proposed is coming in at less than $20 million, about half the cost of the current city proposal.

"The facility itself, the biggest major difference is the layout of the fields," Veneziale said. "We've found, obviously, that the width of the building is the most expensive portion."

"So we decided to change the field layout itself," he said. "The field sizes themselves are actually slightly bigger than was previously provided by the city, but a more rectangular shape for the building is what's going to be the most cost-effective."

The building, Veneziale said, would include one large turf field that could be divided into smaller fields. It would also feature seating, office and storage space, a pro shop, washrooms and change rooms, a party room, and overhead doors so it could also be used to host trade shows.

In addition, the building would be constructed on a site currently occupied by a baseball field on the north end of the city. Veneziale said the building wouldn't take up the entire space, so about 200 more parking spaces could be created.

"We've heard very positive response," he said of the proposal. "We have letters of support from not only the user groups, but several organizations outside of it as well."

Veneziale said they tried to address issues raised previously with proposals for a turf facility "like the overall price and the location."

The need for such a facility has been discussed for years. Veneziale has repeated talked about the lack of space for indoor sports, such as soccer, in the winter months.

SNO has taken to booking times at the Lakehead University hangar when they're available; but students have priority there, so the times are limited.