More than 100 hockey parents, players and community members arrived at the Cloverdale Arena Monday night (Dec. 10) to protest the proposed 鈥減ostponement鈥 of a new ice rink in the community.
鈥淲e鈥檙e not able to grow the game, and we really do desire to grow the game,鈥 Marty Jones, president of the Cloverdale Minor Hockey Association, said to the crowd during the rally. 鈥淢y son Josh and I are up at 4:45 to drive to practice. And then he comes home and has to go to school, and that鈥檚 difficult. He鈥檚 falling asleep during the day.
鈥淚 know people say we make the choice to play hockey, but we love the game. Do you guys love the game?鈥
The crowd cheered, and handmade signs were waved in the air. Jones said he had been hoping to get maybe 20 or 30 kids to the rally 鈥 instead, legions of hockey-minded people were rallying in front of the Cloverdale Arena on 176 Street. Chants of 鈥渟ave our rink鈥 had risen from parents and young players throughout the 30-minute rally, some of whom were carrying signs of protest.
鈥淕ive our youth a safe place to be,鈥 read one. 鈥淚nvest in our youth,鈥 read another.
One echoed the political frustration of many at the rally: 鈥淒oug McCallum鈥檚 plans stink like a bantam locker room.鈥
The City of Surrey鈥檚 draft budget, released a week before the rally, saw the new Cloverdale ice complex as one of several civic projects being put on the back burner in an effort to reduce the city鈥檚 accrual of debt.
Two new ice sheets were planned for a property on the Cloverdale Fairgrounds just south of 64th Avenue and east of 177B Street. Work had begun preparing the site after approval from the previous council, and it was expected to be complete in the summer of 2020.
The city had already spent just over $2.9-million on site preparation for new Cloverdale facility. According to communications manager Oliver Lum, this amount included site preparation for the road that was intended to go next to the arena. Mayor Doug McCallum had vowed to stop the construction of that road shortly after he was elected.
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During a press conference on Tuesday, Dec. 4, McCallum had spoken in favour of the draft budget and defended putting the Cloverdale facility on hold, saying that enrolment was dropping in minor hockey, and the creation of a new ice arena in Bridgeview would alleviate the strain on other Surrey rinks.
But many people at the rally didn鈥檛 seem to agree with McCallum鈥檚 reasons for postponing the Cloverdale facility.
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About 900 kids are enrolled in the Cloverdale hockey association, Jones said, and he had noticed that enrolment had been dropping in recent years. But dropping enrolment meant Cloverdale needed new ice sheets even more, he argued.
Jones also said that the association only has about half the amount of ice it needs in Surrey, and has been spent upwards of $2-million in ice fees outside of Surrey.
鈥淚f we don鈥檛 get this ice, our membership will suffer because the cost will have to be skyrocketing,鈥 Jones said.
In addition, the association isn鈥檛 able to run many of the program鈥檚 they鈥檇 like to run because they can鈥檛 afford it. 鈥淲e鈥檙e not getting to pull in the new registrants,鈥 he added.
Surrey-Cloverdale MLA Marvin Hunt also came out in support of the rally Monday night. Although he agreed with McCallum that unstable soil on the project site made the arena more expensive and difficult, he didn鈥檛 feel that was a good enough reason to let it fall behind.
鈥淚t鈥檚 Cloverdale鈥檚 time,鈥 Hunt said, prompting a cheer from the crowd. 鈥淐loverdale needs this.鈥
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Other community members had other reasons for attending the rally and opposing the draft budget. Hockey dad and Cloverdale Community Association president Mike Bola said that a new rink was needed so kids and parents wouldn鈥檛 have to practice at unearthly hours of the morning and night.
鈥淧arents just don鈥檛 want to have to get up at four in the morning to go to practices,鈥 Bola said. 鈥淚 had that problem last year, and I鈥檓 glad I was away from it, but now I have midnight practices for my oldest son.
鈥淚t鈥檚 not fun. It takes a toll,鈥 he continued. 鈥淪leep is important too.鈥
Erica Nerling has two boys who play with the Cloverdale Minor Hockey Association. Connor, 9, practices in Cloverdale but plays in Fleetwood. Austin, 5, both practices and plays in 91原创.
Protesters at the Cloverdale Minor Hockey Association rally Monday (Dec. 10). Grace Kennedy photo |
鈥淚鈥檓 worried that if the rinks aren鈥檛 built, that there won鈥檛 be enough time or places for kids his age to even start hockey,鈥 she said about her youngest son Austin. 鈥淚 feel like for future generations, they got to get something going so the little ones have a chance to start.鈥
Lone Surrey First council member Linda Annis also came out the rally Monday. She said that she would vote in support of the Cloverdale ice complex when the draft budget came back to council.
But for some who came out in their Cloverdale Colts jerseys and chanted 鈥渟ave our rinks鈥 under the flickering light of the aging Cloverdale Arena sign, it wasn鈥檛 all about the money.
鈥淭his city of Cloverdale and the area we鈥檙e in has been impacted on a negative level by things that are not within our control,鈥 Paul Kovach, hockey parent and coach, said. 鈥淗arm to families, things that have been detrimental to families. And those families were part of the hockey community.鈥
Kovach was referring to the recent death of Paul Bennett, a Cloverdale hockey coach who was shot in a case of mistaken identity, and the 2015 death of Colin Hill, who was shot during a home invasion. Hill鈥檚 daughter had been involved in the Cloverdale hockey association, Kovach said.
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鈥淲e played against her and on teams with her,鈥 Kovach said, 鈥渁nd Paul Bennett was another coach as well.鈥
鈥淚 think it would be of great value for the mayor do to something on a positive level, to inject something positive into the hockey community,鈥 he said. 鈥淚t鈥檚 not going to make things absolutely better, but it will be beneficial.鈥
-with files from Amy Reid