Nick Smith Centre Arena Revitalization

The Town of Arnprior is implementing an arena revitalization project to complete required replacement of the aging infrastructure, improve accessibility and create new meeting and storage spaces. Staff consulted with representatives of Arnprior Minor Hockey Association (AMHA), Arnprior McNab Ringette Association (AMRA), Arnprior Figure Skating Club (AFSC), Arnprior Packers and the Arnprior Rivermen in September of 2023 to record user group wants and needs during the initial planning of this project. Town Council was provided 4 options and the current design was selected as being the best value for the Nick Smith Centre.

The current projected construction windows where ice time will be unavailable are:

Glenn Arthur Arena: February 17, 2025-September 25, 2025
Bert Hall Arena: March 17, 2025 – October 25, 2025
Meeting rooms and public viewing mezzanine: June 1, 2025 - April 2026

Funding provided by the Government of Ontario

Be a Part of the Project

Want to be part of this project and have your company name featured in the Nick Smith Centre? Check out our sponsorship opportunities at: https://www.arnprior.ca/Arena-Sponsorship-and-Advertising-2025.pdf

Scope

Two (2) indoor concrete arena pads including associated refrigeration piping, drainage and essential equipment
Concrete surfaces leading to and from the Ice Machine garage including drainage
Arena boards (accessibility improvements), glass, netting
Arena spectator stands (accessibility improvements)
Arena rubber flooring
Scraping and recoating of roof trusses
Audience comfort heating retrofits
Meeting rooms and public viewing mezzanine (accessibility improvements)
Storage space (user groups and operations)

FAQ

Why are we revitalizing the arenas at the Nick Smith Centre?

Many improvements have occurred in the Nick Smith Centre over the years though the arena slabs and refrigeration piping have been largely untouched since they were installed as part of the original construction in 1977.
Over the past 5 years, significant brine leaks and repairs have occurred at the Nick Smith Centre due to arena components failing. The expected useful life of a rink slab is approximately 25 years and the current slab is 47 years old.
Both arena slabs will be completed concurrently to minimize the timeframe that ice time is not available for the public and to allow for a change of coolant from brine to glycol. Glycol is a more efficient product that is more environmentally friendly.
Given that the arena space will be undergoing major renovations, the opportunity to enhance accessibility is present. Some accessibility improvements that will be implemented as part of this project include:
• Zero-degree entry to and from the ice surface
• Accessible player boxes to support sledge hockey. Player boxes will have clear boards and benches can be removed to allow for synthetic ice to be installed in the bench area.
• New spectator stands in both arenas will feature dedicated accessible seating areas and support railings
• The apron in front of the spectator stands on both arenas will be raised so that wheelchair users will have a clear view of the ice from the boards or the front row
• Addition of three public meeting rooms and a public viewing gallery all with accessible door operators and an elevator to access those on the mezzanine level

Why are there only two small windows in the public mezzanine that overlook the Glenn Arthur Arena (Arena B), but the windows overlooking Bert Hall Arena (Arena A) are the entire wall?

The two windows from the mezzanine that overlook Glenn Arthur Arena (Arena B) will be 6’ wide x 4’ high. The wall between the two arenas is a structural firewall. All alterations are subject to modern building code requirements. These two windows are quite expensive but were determined to be the best compromise to allow some form of spectating of both arenas. Each window must meet current firewall requirements and be reinforced with significant structural works including structural steel extending to the foundation to meet modern seismic requirements. Further alterations to this firewall are considered not to be feasible based on the amount of additional structural steel, fire rated fixtures and foundation aspects. Preliminary values suggest that larger openings than those presented would cost hundreds of thousands of dollars and may jeopardize this project being completed in the defined timeline.
The windows to Arena A are not under all of the same restrictions as those mentioned above as they will be installed in a new structure being erected within the existing walls of the Bert Hall Arena (Arena A). Windows being implemented across the majority of the public mezzanine facing Arena A did not involve the same challenges as creating openings in a structural firewall.

What will the spectator capacity of the new arenas be?

Arena A: Bert Hall Arena - Spectator stands will be removed from one side to allow for the construction of new storage rooms, meeting rooms, offices and public space. Though this will reduce the overall spectator capacity of Arena A from 1600 to 1010, there will be 11 dedicated barrier free spots in the front row with capacity to add more barrier free spots if the need exists during an event. Based on consultations and publicly available data, this new capacity is sufficient for user group needs within the Ottawa Valley and is comparable to nearby municipalities.
Arena B – Glenn Arthur Arena - The current capacity of the Glenn Arthur Arena is 200. The new stands will have a capacity of 190 which will also include dedicated accessible seating. There is not sufficient space in that arena to add any additional seating.

Who was consulted for this project?

In mid-September 2023, Town of Arnprior staff from both the Recreation Department and Operations Department (Engineering) met with representatives of major user groups of the facility – Arnprior Minor Hockey Association (AMHA), Arnprior McNab Ringette Association (AMRA), Arnprior Figure Skating Club (AFSC), Arnprior Packers Hockey Club, and the Arnprior Rivermen. During these meetings, staff presented four different design options for their feedback and consideration. All groups provided comments, suggestions and ideas of their own for this project. The scope of this project was limited to the footprint of the arenas, purposely excluding changerooms to ensure feasibility. Construction timeline impacts, accessibility enhancements and equitability of the spaces (meeting rooms and storage areas) were significant topics discussed. The main goal of this project is to replace the rink slab infrastructure which has experienced significant failures in recent years.
As this project would directly impact our primary user groups, staff felt it best to speak directly with them to address the needs heard from them in the past which have been concerns expressed by their membership/parents/etc.
Changes/enhancements to the building would, in most cases, positively benefit these user groups, but there were different options that staff wanted specific feedback from them on (i.e. more changes rooms and less storage or more storage options and no new change rooms).
Though this is the most significant Town facility project in recent years, a majority of the cost of this project is related to the replacement of the rink slab and associated piping. These are critical infrastructure repairs that must be completed for the Town to continue to reliably offer ice surfaces.
As the Town was working on a new Recreation and Parks Master Plan 2023 through 2024, the public were actively engaged in a series of consultations for generalized feedback on the Nick Smith Centre, service delivery and community wants and needs. Through this process, we heard the need for more public meeting spaces coupled with the Recreation Department’s need for additional space to operate programs. This and other feedback were factored into this project and often mirrored the feedback received from the user groups.

Who will have access to the second level mezzanine and meeting rooms?

User agreements will outline non-exclusive use of the meetings rooms and public mezzanine for games, tournaments, practices and meetings. These spaces will also be available to rent by the public and for Town of Arnprior programming. They will not be available for booking during private events or ticketed events. Council has provided direction to investigate a negotiate lease agreement for one of the meeting rooms for the exclusive use of the Arnprior Packers Jr. B Hockey Club.

How does ice allocation work for the Nick Smith Centre?

The priority sequence for ice allocation at the Nick Smith Centre is outlined in the Recreation Facility Use Policy (By-Law 7084-20) . The priority list is as follows:

Town operated programs, activities and events
Registered Minor Organizations (i.e. AMHA/AMRA/AFSC)
Junior Sports Programs (competitive) (i.e. Packers/Aces/Titans)
Registered Adult Organizations
Registered Community Organizations
Previous Year Users (Local)
Local Residents
Local Schools/Schools Boards
For Profit/Commercial
Non-Local Residents

Each year, users group work with the Director of Recreation submitting their ice allocation requests. No preference to specific arenas are given unless requested or subject to its availability. Consideration will be made for organizations bringing activities to the community which support the development of full and fair access for participants. Recognition of the unique schedule requirements of all users will be taken into consideration when allocating facilities. These policies are constantly being reviewed and with facility usage demands increasing, this policy will be reviewed for 2025.

Project Details and Updates

Timeline

May - July 2023: Design Scope Request for Proposal (RFP)
August 2, 2023: Council Awards design services to Architecture 49
October 23, 2023: Options presented to Town Council and current design chosen by Council
June - July 2024: Construction scope Request for Tender (RFT)
July 22, 2024: Award of Construction to Frecon Construction Limited
August 2024: Delegation to AMO
September 2024: Community Sport and Recreation Infrastructure Fund Grant Application Submitted
November 12, 2024: Report to Council - Arena Sponsorship and Advertising Opportunities
February 17-September 25, 2025: Glenn Arthur Arena Under Construction
February 24, 2025: Report to Council - Public Space Use