A major announcement was made Thursday by the committee formed to restore Dana Quewezance Memorial Field, the facility in the Woodlawn Regional Park used for soccer and football until the 2011 floods.
The facility has been unusable since the devastation of last year's flooding, but the Woodlawn Athletic Park Restoration Project should see it functional again in time for the 2013 season.
The committee is comprised of representatives from the regional park (chair Nathaniel Puffalt), Penta Completions Estevan Minor Football (Steve McLellan and Brian Smith), the ECS football program (vice chair Brian Senchuk), Estevan Soccer (Sigfredo Gonzalez), and local baseball and softball programs (Joe Lingelbach).
The three-phase plan announced for the facility also includes the pursuit of the 2016 Saskatchewan Summer Games. The third phase of the project involves installing various track and field venues in an attempt to host those Games.
Phase 1 of the plan aims to have the field functional for the 2013 season by cleaning up, reshaping the field, implementing an irrigation system, sodding the field and restoring buildings on the property.
That phase is already underway, as sod has been installed on a significant part of the field. Sodding is expected to be finished this weekend.
The budget for the phase is $150,000, including $125,000 for field restoration and the rest for building restoration. The committee is currently short $39,000 for the phase.
Phase 2 involves improvements to the facility, including new field lighting and upgrades to the grandstands, fencing and parking areas. It also includes plans to improve the family experience by adding a picnic area, playground and score clock.
The budget for Phase 2 is $327,000, including a current shortfall of $126,000. The budget includes $125,000 for field lighting and $150,000 for grandstand improvement. Part of the funding for this phase will come from the Saskatchewan Roughriders Legacy Fund.
Phase 3 is more of a long-term project, with the goal of bidding for the 2016 Summer Games and perhaps other provincial and regional events.
The total budget for Phase 3 is $650,000, although that is based on estimated costs at this time. Only $5,000 of that total has been committed as of now. The budget for the running track is $400,000 and $250,000 for other field facilities, including long jump and shot put.
Aside from community groups and corporate donations (either financial or in-kind work), other funding sources will include the federal Community Infrastructure Improvement Fund, the Saskatchewan Roughriders Legacy Fund and the $25,000 prize from the 2011 Kraft Celebration Tour.
See next week's Mercury for full story.
