THUNDER BAY – Thunder Bay’s city council will consider installing retractable safety netting at its hockey arenas, including Fort William Gardens, after councillors unanimously supported Mayor Bill Mauro’s call for a report on the issue.
With the re-opening of city arenas, Mauro said the time was right to take a look at the issue, which was first brought up to council in a citizen deputation in January of 2020.
According to a memo from general manager of community services Kelly Robertson presented to council on Monday, city staff have indicated that “observed incidents of pucks leaving the ice surface vary by facility/activity and are rare.”
Robertson said Wednesday she was not aware of any incidents of flying pucks causing injury at city arenas in the recent past.
Safety netting is already installed in the end zones of city-owned arenas. Mauro’s motion directs city administration to return with a report by the end of January, 2022 on the possibility of adding netting in front of other spectator areas.
The report will include updated cost estimates and potential funding sources in time for consideration during deliberations over the 2022 city budget in January and February.
Installing retractable netting could cost close to $140,000, all told, according to rough cost estimates presented to council in January 2020. That includes an estimate of $84,000 for the Fort William Gardens and an estimated maximum of $52,500 for the city’s five satellite arenas (Neebing, Delaney, Port Arthur, Grandview, Current River).
Coun. Rebecca Johnson said without a strong rationale for the step, she’d be hard pressed to support the expenditure.
“I’m not prepared to vote for anything additional for the budget at this point in time, unless you can provide for me a really good reason this should be in here,” she said. “According to this memo, I don’t see the need to have that.”
The at-large councillor asked administration what would be removed from the draft 2022 budget, if costs for the netting were recommended for approval.
“I’d like to reframe the answer a bit,” Gale said. “The question wouldn’t be whether [administration] would support it or not, it’s about competing priorities… If we were to add it into the budget, we don’t need to take anything out. We would increase the capital budget.”
Council could choose to remove other items to keep the budget steady, he said.
Coun. Andrew Foulds said the budget debate was premature, noting Mauro’s motion simply sought a report.
The additional information will allow council to “make informed decisions during the budget,” he said.
Coun. Albert Aiello said the issue was well worth looking into.
“I think it’s important to be proactive,” he said. “In our rinks, we want to provide a positive experience, and it’s not fun when someone gets a puck to the head… We don’t want to see anyone get hurt.”
Coun. Brian Hamilton, on the other hand, was cool on the idea.
“I’m kind of wondering about the spectator experience, having a net in front of people that are watching their children play,” he said. “At a lot of the satellite arenas, it’s not professional level hockey… I personally would rather see my kids without the net in the way.”
Robertson told councillors the city had received different opinions in 2020 on whether netting was desirable from various user groups.
“Different users have different perspectives on the use of the netting and the way it might affect their enjoyment,” she said. “We will endeavour to get a more in-depth review of that feedback.”
The eventual recommendation on netting could be different for a facility like Fort William Gardens than for satellite arenas, given different uses of the space, Robertson said.
There’s no legislative requirement to protect spectator areas with netting, she said. However, she noted the Ontario Recreation Facilities Association recommends adherence to the CSA guideline for spectator safety, which includes installing netting.
Considerations for the decision will include factors like diverse uses of the facilities, the history and likelihood of incidents, spectator viewing experience, and ongoing operational costs, according to Robertson’s memo.
