The District of Sicamous is seeking the management contract for the Sicamous and District Recreation Centre.
The hockey rink is owned by the Columbia Shuswap Regional District (CSRD) and has been managed by the Sicamous and District Recreation Centre Society since the arena opened in the early 1980s.
The existing agreement between the CSRD and the rec centre society ends on June 10.
Wally Thacker, who took over as president of the society in November, said the management contract was terminated with six months notice given. He said the termination followed the election of a new society executive in October 2020. The society had the opportunity to put forward a new proposal for the management of the facility but Thacker said they chose not to.
The regional district released a request for proposals in February to award the contract for the management of the facility.
At their Feb. 24 council meeting, the District of Sicamous council decided to be among the groups seeking the management contract for the facility. District staff will put together a proposal ahead of the March 17 deadline for applications. Any groups who are shortlisted for the management contract will have to present their proposals to the CSRD at the end of March.
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Sicamous Mayor Terry Rysz thinks the district is well suited to manage the facility, saying the recreation department will be able to enhance the important community amenity.
Rysz said a large part of the Sicamous desire to take over management of the facility is to have greater input into how the financial contribution the district makes to the facility each year is used. Despite being a major contributor financially, Rysz said the district has not had much of a say in how it is run in the past.
Rysz added the district has heard concerns from user groups about the way the facility is managed, noting if the district is chosen to manage the facility, it will have the power to address those issues.
The CSRD request for proposals states a decision about the future of the facility’s management will be made by April 22.
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