Kronau, located 28 kilometers southeast of Regina, is in the beginning stages of the Outdoor Skating Rink Revitalization Project.
The infrastructure grant agreement was finalized in September. The project is funded by the Government of Saskatchewan and the Government of Canada, with a budget of $140, 618.
Kronau’s previous outdoor rink was an old rink torn down from Regina and rebuilt in Kronau over 20 years ago. It was no longer safe.
“It was in shambles. You know, boards are broken, there’s nails sticking out,” said Joe Steranko, lead volunteer of the project. “It wasn’t gonna last much longer. So it was pretty much as unsafe for kids for the most part.”
The new outdoor rink will feature a cement pad, which means the facility can be used year-round for activities.
“It means that the kids have a central spot to hang out and be active. Accessibility year round means trying sports like rollerblading and skateboarding,” Steranko said. “What about basketball? And that’s just availability of sports and just activities.”
The cement work and engineers were hired professionally, but the construction of the rest of the project will rely heavily on volunteers.
“The big projects like the cement pad itself is going to be hired out, we want that done right and by professionals so that will be hired out,” said Steranko. “Then the engineering before that was hired out and so there is some parts to it that other contractors have to be involved with.”
Volunteer work is vital in every part of the Outdoor Rink Revitalization Project. Steranko works with Lona Gervais, President of the Kronau Community Recreation Cooperative.
“We’re looking for local people who have the skills necessary for certain things like welding and skid-steer work like Bobcat like you know, we’re not going to get just any volunteers for that stuff,” said Steranko. “We are getting local volunteer contractors as well to just give their free time and do the work for free basically.”
Volunteers have been involved from the very beginning of the project. From bottle drives to demolition, the community has been coming together to work on the new rink.
“We’ve had a lot, I’d say upwards of 10 to 15 people involved from the bottle can drives and stuff like that. And we did an auction last year, or maybe it was two years ago already,” Steranko said. “So there’s quite a few people that want to get involved but for the most part, there’s like four or five of us that are doing the organizing of the actual like everything like the rink itself.
As of October 2021, the old rink has been demolished. Steranko, Gervais, and the Community Recreation Cooperative have gotten the permits needed to continue with the project but are waiting on pricing and planning to be completed. Nearing winter time, Gervais is unsure of the progress that can be made before the snow comes.
“It’s, you know, just about the middle of October here,” Gervais said. “So yeah, I’m not sure what’s going to happen between now and winter time. But yeah, we’re just sort of, like, in the early parts of the projects.”
The project does not have a set completion date, but Steranko is hoping to complete the project next summer.
“I would like to say by the beginning of next summer like 2022 but that being said, we have had delays already,” said Steranko. “You never know with this kind of project and with COVID. We’ve expanded our budgets. We had to, you know, make some changes and it’s been a bit tougher than I thought as a volunteer to be honest so lots goes into it, especially when you’re in a public space like that. We have to have the engineering and the permits and the surveys and all that stuff set before you begin setting off with a shovel in the ground.”
Having a new facility offers year-round accessibility for the community to come together.
“The kids have a central spot to hang out and be active year-round. They’re able to try sports like rollerblading and skateboarding and basketball. And that’s just a just availability for sports,” Steranko said.
Steranko says the hard work and dedication from volunteers will pay off.
