THUNDER BAY – Private companies and other organizations would have significant leeway to propose their own visions for how to build and operate an indoor turf sports facility under a newly proposed Expression of Interest (EOI) process.
The framework recommended by City of Thunder Bay administration will come to city council for approval on Monday, as the body searches for a way forward on the long-debated project.
The recommended process would set minimum requirements such as field size and accessibility standards, but allow proponents to put forward alternate locations to Chapples Park, shorter-term solutions such as soccer bubbles, and “creative arrangements” like public-private partnerships or alternate financing and ownership models.
Thunder Bay’s city council threw the door open to new possibilities for the facility in May, after narrowly rejecting a $39 million tender to build an approved design at Chapples.
At the time, councillors who voted not to award the tender said the facility’s mounting price tag and the uncertain financial impacts of COVID-19 left them unable to support it.
Coun. Mark Bentz, who proposed opening the process to the private sector, has said at least four groups have approached municipal leaders with unsolicited interest since council rejected the tender.
A report from Kelly Robertson, general manager of community services, suggests in a report to council evaluating any Expressions of Interest received on six key criteria: experience and capacity, consideration of the community’s needs, proposed site, proposed building solution and sustainability, social stewardship, and financial implications for the city.
EOIs could propose a role for proponents in financing, design, construction, operation, maintenance, and even programming at the facility, the report suggests.
While the majority of turf user groups expressed a preference for the Chapples Park location, the city notes, other locations could be proposed, including on non-city-owned land.
Several councillors suggested the city could find savings by building elsewhere, given challenging construction conditions at Chapples that would have required 10-storey pilings be installed.
Those shortlisted after a first round of the EOI process would move on to a second stage that could involve a request for proposals or sole-source negotiations, according to Robertson’s report.
The report sets out two separate sets of minimum design requirements, one for short-term solutions and another for long-term solutions.
For short-term solutions, proposed facilities must be available from mid-October to mid-April, offer FIFA-quality synthetic turf that can accommodate a diversity of sports, a minimum field dimension of 27.43 metres by 45.72 metres, minimum height clearance of 12.12 metres, accessible washrooms within the facility or immediately adjacent, and be located near sufficient parking and public transit (within 400 metres, the city suggests).
Proposals for short-term solutions would also need to be able to open to the public by the fall of 2023 or sooner.
Other recommended, but not mandatory, stipulations include a larger playing surface and ability to partition the field to accommodate multiple users at once.
Long-term solutions must meet those requirements and others: proposed facilities must be available from October to mid-May, offer a field dimension approximating or larger than 58 by 95 metres, change rooms (including separate facilities for referees), administrative space, storage, and the ability to partition to accommodate multiple concurrent users.
Long-term proposals must also offer a two-lane walking track longer than 318 metres, spectator capacity for at least 900 people, and comply with the city’s facility design standards and net-zero emissions policies.
Recommended stipulations for the long-term proposals include multi-purpose space, a food and beverage concession, the inclusion of other sport and recreation amenities, and the suggested location at Chapples Park.
Several city councillors have expressed skepticism the EOI process will unearth anything more appealing than the design council had settled on last year.
Options like a bubble and partnerships with the private sector had already been considered by council and discarded, said Mayor Bill Mauro, who has championed the facility.
The local soccer community has expressed frustration over the city's indecision over how to respond since a privately-owned sports dome at the CLE collapsed in 2016, leaving thousands of players without a permanent indoor venue.
A draft timeline in Robertson’s report would see the EOI process open on July 12, an information session a week later, and a deadline to submit expressions of interest by Aug. 27.
Short list selections would take place on Oct. 4, with recommendations coming back to city council by November.
