THUNDER BAY — Various user groups will participate when a community-led fundraising campaign gets underway to help offset the cost of Thunder Bay's proposed indoor turf facility.
That campaign won't start until city council gives final approval to the $42 million project.
Sometime this spring, council is expected to award the job to one of three companies that pre-qualified for the work.
Once that happens, Soccer Northwest, which previously offered to contribute $1 million toward the cost, will team up with other organizations to try to raise an amount that hasn't yet been made public.
"We'll come up with that in due time," said Soccer Northwest president Michael Veneziale in an interview Wednesday.
Veneziale is scheduled to provide city council with an overview of the proposed campaign next week.
He said the participating groups will operate under a new name that will be made public at a later date, and that their campaign will last 18 to 20 months to keep in line with the construction timetable.
"I know what we're planning on doing, and I'm excited for it to come out one day," he said.
In the meantime, Veneziale said, it's important to make sure every turf user group has a voice at the table, that the campaign is in line with what the city is looking for, "and also that we're legally able to do the things that we're doing. It's going to be a grassroots approach, with what's available to us, and we're going to keep working to do anything we can to make the facility happen."
He said a lot of work has been going on behind the scenes to prepare for fundraising, and Monday's presentation to council – which is happening at the request of city administration – will bring council up to date on what's transpired so far.
"We're just in the process of making sure we have everything aligned and ready to go for day one."
Veneziale said he's confident fundraising will be successful because he believes the current rendition of the covered turf facility has much more support than previous plans.
