Ownership of the Agriplex Building is being officially transferred to the Battlefords Agricultural Society.
That decision came at Tuesday's council meeting in North Battleford, with a resolution passed by council authorizing the mayor and city clerk to exercise the agreement to transfer the building.
The sale was for the nominal amount of $1 and covers the building itself. The land remains City-owned, but is leased to the Ag Society.
The sale ends a long saga of uncertainty about the future of the facility.
Previously, the Ag Society and the City shared the Agriplex facility. The City operated it as a hockey arena during the winter while the Ag Society used it when the hockey season was over for their various events such as the exhibition and Agrimex.
But the Agriplex’s future had been under discussion for a while. It came under discussion again during capital budget deliberations in early 2013, when council was told the facility would need more than $500,000 in capital repairs to keep it going as a hockey arena.
Later that fall, the ice rink was closed due to safety concerns and the ice plant was removed.
The transfer means the Ag Society will have the building for the full 12 months of the year.
“We’re happy to see it get to this point,” said Director of Leisure Services Bill Samborski about the transfer.
Councillor Ryan Bater noted he was “nostalgic about it. I grew up at that rink. I grew up playing hockey, learned to skate. It really tore up my heart a couple of years ago when we were talking about the future of the facility and I was trying to take away my emotions about that place from the facts about what was required.”
He was encouraged that “we were able to put this agreement together, encouraged that the Ag Society sees value in it.”
The final decision also means the city remains short one ice surface, a situation the hockey community has had to deal with for a couple of years.
In speaking to reporters afterwards, City Manager Jim Puffalt recognized the need for a new ice surface, and noted the plans for eventual replacement of the Civic Centre call for two ice surfaces.
“Certainly as we go toward the new Civic, we’re looking at a new twin pad being constructed,” said Puffalt, who added “there’s a number of opportunities to take a look at. So that’s part of our planning process as we go forward.”
