Toronto city council set to chip in on $7M Moss Park Arena overhaul
· Toronto Sun
Only a year after Toronto city council’s drama was put on ice, Moss Park Arena is set for a total refresh.
Councillors were expected to consider $300,000 in funding for the ice rink, at Queen and Sherbourne Sts., in one of three hockey-related items at this week’s city council meeting.
Visit amunra-online.pl for more information.
That money, paid out from the city’s Section 37 pool of funding, would be “just a portion” of the $7 million that the city has earmarked to bring the crumbling downtown arena up to modern standards, Karin Fritzlar told the Toronto Sun .
Fritzlar chairs the board that oversees the arena, and said she and the other members are “really, really pleased” that the city has stepped up.
“The arena had actually been on the list for a state-of-good-repair project for quite some time, and thankfully all stars sort of aligned and we were able to take a look at everything that was required,” she said.
‘Pleasure’ working with Moise’s team
The Sun has reported in detail the issues at the arena, from disrepair to the attempt last year by Chris Moise, the local city councillor, to fire the board’s members and replace them with what appeared to be campaign donors . (Moise’s office has been contacted for comment on the new arena funding.)
Fritzlar, however, told the Sun ahead of city council’s vote that it’s been “a real pleasure working with” Moise’s team.
“It’s been a really great, genuine working relationship with the councillor and his office. I will say that. We’ve got a really strong partnership happening,” she said.
The amount of funding means the renovation will go beyond the arena’s basic needs, and pay for new amenities and some esthetic improvements. Highlights will include a new sound system and scoreboard, better washrooms, a new refrigeration facility, and electric Zambonis.
The arena will be closed for about a year for the work, which will overlap with some changes to the adjacent John Innes Community Centre.
Council wants Maple Leafs outdoor game
Meanwhile, council gave a quick approval to the idea of a big outdoor spectacle starring the Toronto Maple Leafs.
City council’s endorsement, brought forward by Deputy Mayor Paul Ainslie, amounts to a request that the NHL consider Toronto for an outdoor game, and that senior bureaucrats engage with the league and Leafs owner Maple Leaf Sports and Entertainment.
“The game could take place at the Rogers Centre with the roof open, providing a magnificent view of the CN Tower and Toronto’s city skyline — creating an unforgettable backdrop for fans and global broadcasts or another iconic outdoor stadium,” Ainslie wrote to Mayor Olivia Chow’s powerful executive committee when first proposing the idea.
He framed the outdoor game as a way to celebrate 100 years since the hockey club took on the Maple Leafs name.
While the Rogers Centre is specifically named in the proposal, it’s unclear if it’s feasible to hold an event there in winter with the roof open.
Because the baseball-first facility uses artificial turf, there’s no system to drain away any precipitation. The Blue Jays have stated restrictions on the opening and closing of the retractable roof in case of poor weather.
There is also the potential for ice to fall off of the CN Tower. In 2018, businesses next to the landmark had to close because of that danger, and a piece even pierced a hole into the roof of the Rogers Centre.
MLSE did not respond to an earlier request for comment from the Sun about Ainslie’s idea.
New plaque for Arena Gardens
Also in Moise’s ward, city council was to consider a new plaque to recognize the Arena Gardens, the first home ice for the Leafs, and to commemorate the club’s 100th anniversary.
The arena opened in 1912, predating NHL hockey by a few years. It was torn down in 1989.
In A Great Game , his book on the early history of pro hockey in Toronto, former prime minister Stephen Harper described the Arena Gardens as “quite a palace” by pre-war standards, with seating for more than 7,000 and the first artificial ice rink in Eastern Canada.
“While the Arena Gardens is now remembered as the inadequate old place eclipsed by Conn Smythe’s Maple Leaf Gardens, it was one of the continent’s top facilities in its day,” Harper wrote.
A Heritage Toronto plaque was installed on Mutual St. at the site of Arena Gardens in 2013 . The Sun sought clarification about what the news means for the old plaque, but Heritage Toronto did not respond.