Youth Centre could need extra $2.6 million

July 17, 2013 · 0 Comments

(A skate park will be part of the overall designs for the Youth Centre at the Aurora Family Leisure Complex. Auroran photo by Mark Pavilons)

By Brock Weir

Aurora’s teens and tweens will soon get a better idea of what their Youth Centre will look like.

Architects tasked with designing the Community Space for Youth, which will be tacked onto the south end of the Aurora Family Leisure Complex, are expected to present their designs for Council’s consideration this week.

But as designs and plans change and evolve, so does the price tag to meet challenges encountered at the Complex.

A report from Al Downey, Aurora’s Director of Parks and Recreation, pegs the new price of the Youth Centre at nearly $3 million more than previous estimates. $1 million more will be needed to complete the works originally envisioned for the youth space, while a further $1.6 million will be needed to address the extra issues, and a possible further new addition to the
Complex site.

The price hike, said Mr. Downey, can be attributed to unexpected conditions found when his department and architects took a closer look at the Aurora Family Leisure Complex (AFLC). The funds are recommended to come out of the Town’s Cash-in-Lieu of Parkland reserves.

“During the design process, a major focus was to ensure costs were minimized while delivering the program elements requested by the Steering Committee,” said Mr. Downey in his report to Council. “Early in the process, the architect suggested that it would be more cost-effective to construct a one-storey addition to the complex to accommodate a new Fitness Centre and return the existing Fitness Centre back to a gymnasium. It will also provide a better scale to the entrance as opposed to a two-storey gymnasium.”

A Youth Centre has been considered for the Town of Aurora for nearly 12 years. After years of debate, master plans, and going back to the drawing board, the wheels were finally put truly in motion last fall. In addition to getting Council’s approval to move ahead with the plan, the Parks and Recreation Department also took their plans to public meetings held at Dr. G.W. Williams Secondary School and St. Maximilian Kolbe Catholic High School to gauge the interests of local students.

While they had many ideas of what they would like to see in a youth centre, including a skate park, which is currently being designed by the Canadian Ramp Company, a key message staff and Councillors took home with them was that the youth wanted to be fully involved in steering what will ultimately be a space for them.

In addition to the architects, Williams student Kyle Nice has been part of the Youth Committee bringing this into fruition, as have Hanna Thiessen and Kristina Reed of Aurora High School, along with Courtney Collard, Alessia Chisena, Leandra Scaccia, Jason Kwan, and Sharif Mansour, all students at St. Max.

Designs put forward this week are expected to include distinct fitness and aerobic areas, five activity rooms, a climbing wall, new change rooms, a teaching kitchen, a “dedicated youth space”, a snack bar, a running track, and a full-size gym.

“Renovations have been more extensive than first envisioned in order to address the program needs of the Steering Committee,” Mr. Downey notes in his report. “The design concept, as presented, will require an additional $1 million in order to complete the works.”

When the plan to build the Community Space for Youth onto the AFLC came up for approval by Council earlier this year. It was met around the Council table with mixed reviews with some, such as Mayor Geoffrey Dawe and Councillor John Abel, supporting the concept, stating it was the right choice and the right location.

Others, such as Councillor Wendy Gaertner, voted against the plan, not only because it is not central and easily accessible by Aurora’s youth, but also because, in the off hours, this youth space would be available to other community programs, such as popular seniors’ activities. Therefore, in her view, the proposal was not truly a “youth centre.”

Earlier discussions were also cited in the debate where Councillors mulled tearing down the AFLC altogether and starting fresh, arguing it was a poorly constructed “white elephant.”

Additional costs to the Youth Centre project have been found because of the building’s current condition. According to Mr. Downey’s report, previously questioned soil conditions in the area have proven to be a problem requiring additional work, and a previously unidentified storm sewer pipe was found in the way.

Several additions and further modifications to the building made since its construction do not meet the building code, including change rooms, and the running track. $200,000 will be needed to replace the track.

Despite the cost setback, Mayor Geoffrey Dawe says he continues to back the youth space at the AFLC.

“I still think it is the right location,” he says. “There were suggestions that maybe we should just tear it down and build a new one at the other side of the parking lot. You’re into very substantial building costs. This will extend the life of the building by a substantial percentage.

“Was it a white elephant? There were parts of it that weren’t built well, which was proved, and quite frankly that is one of the problems with going to the lowest bidder. You mostly get good work but that is not always the case.”