City Administration presented a list of possible upgrades for Commonwealth Stadium Tuesday, meant for the 2015 FIFA Women’s World Cup – but some points on the list shocked a number of councillors.
Administration came up with the costs outlined after touring Commonwealth Stadium with officials from the Canadian Soccer Association.
City officials said the CSA was not impressed with the way the locker rooms are set up at Commonwealth – their concerns revolved around the locker rooms’ distance from the field.
To meet these demands, administration brought forward the following three scenarios:
- Option 1: Redevelopment of the north concourse ($26.34 million)
- Option 2: Expansion of the southwest corner, near the existing locker rooms ($12.02 million)
- Option 3: Installing temporary trailers on the track as locker rooms ($4.12 million)
For each option, an additional cost of $8.66 million was added for rehabilitation of the stadium.
The prices did not go over well with many on the Community Services Committee.
“For the CSA to think we should spend $20 million for some person under 20 years of age can’t walk an extra 10 or 15 feet from locker room to field is just hard for me to believe,” Mayor Stephen Mandel said in the committee meeting.
“The requirements that some of the organizations have are sometimes onerous, because they don’t pay for it,” Mandel said later.
“I think there needs to be a balance on what’s reasonable, and what isn’t reasonable.”
The presentation stated the preferred option was Option 2, which would cost a total of $20.68 million.
Councillor Amarjeet Sohi agreed with the presentation, and noted the international audience that will be focused on the games.
“Do we need to spend $8 million or $12 million, what is the best value, I don’t know,” Sohi said. “Look at how much international exposure you’re going to get.”
Nothing was decided Tuesday, and answers to the committee’s questions should be returned by the end of October.
With files from Susan Amerongen
