If you’ve lived in Estevan for a significant length of time over the past 60 years, odds are you have a fond memory of the Civic Auditorium.
Many of the memories likely revolve around minor hockey. Perhaps it was the place where a first game was played, a first goal was scored or a championship was won. Perhaps it was the place where lifelong friendships were made. Perhaps that camaraderie in the dressing room after a game was a highlight in season filled with losses.
For others, the strongest memories might be related to watching the Estevan Bruins play hockey, and the victories the club enjoyed.
But the Civic has been much more than a hockey arena. It has been the site of figure skating competitions, broomball games, curling provincial competitions and other sporting events.
It has been a place of high school graduations, rodeos, cabarets and community events.
The most recent was the Spooky Civic on Halloween that attracted approximately 1,000 people, some of whom might have been in the building for the first time.
The Spooky Civic might have been the grand ole’ building’s last hurrah, but we hope that wasn’t the case.
The City of Estevan announced on Tuesday afternoon that the Civic Auditorium was closed indefinitely. The city recently received a survey on the structural, electrical, mechanical and architectural components of the venue, and decided to close the 60-year-old building for safety reasons.
It’s not known when, or if, the Civic will ever reopen.
And so the city faces a very difficult decision. Does it pour money into repairing the Civic and bringing it up to the necessary standard to keep it open and extend its shelf life for a few years? If it’s a relatively low amount to complete the renovations, this is a good bet.
But if the cost will be high to repair a 60-year-old building that likely won’t make it to 65, even with substantial repairs, then the Civic will likely have to be closed.
That means the Power Dodge Ice Centre will have to become the No. 2 arena in the city, and renovations will be needed to that facility, in terms of seating, lighting and other issues, to make it adequate for spectators and players alike.
It also accelerates a tough decision for council on whether to have two or three arenas in Estevan. Local users have been thrilled to have three facilities for most of the past six years. And we saw the challenges when the city was down to two venues a year ago.
There definitely are benefits of having three rinks, but again, it has to make sense from a financial perspective, just like it has to make sense from a financial perspective whether to extend the life of the Civic by a few more years.
