Black Diamond town council is leaving the Oilfields Regional Arena’s operational procedures up to staff and administration after being asked to step in by two user groups last week.
At council’s Oct. 21 meeting, representatives from the High Country Minor Hockey Association and Foothills Figure Skating Club expressed concerns during a delegation that user groups aren’t being asked for their input regarding the arena’s procedures in light of the COVID-19 pandemic, and suggested council intervene.
“The perception of our membership is we’re being told, ‘These are the guidelines’ and unless we push back hard on the guidelines those are the guidelines,” Murray Ingstrup, president of the hockey association, told council. “I don’t feel council is inputting enough into what the guidelines are.”
The Oilfields Regional Arena opened to prebooked user groups under strict guidelines in August.
Some of the guidelines include limiting the number of people on the ice at one time to 30, increasing time between user groups to 30 minutes from 15 to allow for sanitizing, keeping the arena doors locked while practices and games are underway and prohibiting spectators, including parents.
Plans for Stage 2, expected to launch this week, were presented to user groups and include decreasing the time between user groups to 15 minutes to allow for more ice time and allowing use of the change rooms, yet spectators still aren’t allowed.
Ingstrup told council that many other arenas are allowing spectators, with safety measures in place, and that he wants to see operational procedures in the arena more consistent with other arenas in the area.
“The document put out by the Oilfields arena is far more restrictive than what’s recommended by the Province,” he said. “A lot of parents just want to see what’s going on in the inside. They don’t appreciate things like doors being locked and not even being able to get in there.”
Foothills Skating Club vice-president Karla Powell, who also spoke on behalf of Oilfields Sports Association’s pond hockey league, told council that many families chose not to enrol their children because parents are unable to watch.
“It is affecting our membership,” she said. “This is a real sticking point with membership of our younger families. They don’t like the idea of not having access to their children.”
Powell said rather than arena staff asking user groups for input, user groups are being dictated to and she suggested council intervene.
Mayor Ruth Goodwin explained that according to Municipal Government Act, council’s responsibility is to oversee and provide guidelines at a governance level, but that the day-to-day operations of a facility are up to the chief administrative officer and her staff.
Following Ingstrup and Powell’s presentation, chief administrative officer Sharlene Brown told council that it needs to give clear direction if it’s to start moving into the operational world of how facilities are run regarding spectators.
Deputy Mayor Daryl Lalonde replied that it’s not council’s responsibility to direct administration to take further action regarding the arena’s operational procedures.
“When it doesn’t work for the groups it’s a complaint and they want us to solve it,” he said. “I don’t think we should make any recommendations.”
Council made no motions and gave no directions following the presentation, but did ask several questions of parks and recreation manager Les Quinton, who was in attendance, about the decision made around not allowing spectators.
Quinton said the indoor arena doesn’t have enough staff for additional cleaning if spectators were allowed. He said at least two people would be needed as the facility operates seven days a week and up to 12 hours a day.
“Putting the spectators back in also brings in the lobby washrooms and we don’t have enough time in 15 minutes for them to leave and the next to come in for us to clean it,” he said. “That’s why we looked at not putting the spectators in at the moment until we can come up with an alternative to not cut back our time again.”
Quinton said other arenas in the region have larger spectator seating areas. The Oilfields Regional Arena, he said, would seat only 20 spectators due to two-metre physical distancing regulations.
Arena staff is currently looking into setting up a camera so parents can watch the action on the ice from the curling club lounge, he said.
Coun. Jackie Stickel said she understands parents’ concerns about not being able to watch their children on the ice, especially younger children who are just developing their skills, and stressed the importance of recreational activities in the community.
“People need to have sports activities, they need to feel not so confined and stressed by COVID,” she said. “I think there are options here and I think it needs to be looked at.”
Quinton said once the Scott Seaman Sports Rink (outdoor) opens this week or next, he and his staff will have time to reassess the possibility of allowing limited spectators in the Oilfields Regional Arena.
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To see Alberta Health Services latest statistics concerning COVID-19 cases in the Okotoks area, including Black Diamond and Foothills County, go to https://www.alberta.ca/maps/covid-19-status-map.htm
