Curl Brady Fotheringham Contributing Writer IN a move to settle ruf- fled feathers among - North Shore curlers, the North Vancouver Recreation Commission is wying to mitigate damages and resurrect its reputation after closing, the Lonsdale recreation centre to curling recently. Fearing =a between themselves — and members of the North Vancouver Curling Club, the “recreation commission is on the offensive, trying to make amends for all concerned. “At issite is the relocation — or eviction, depending upon whom you. talk to — of the North Vancouver Curling tub from the Lonsdale recre- ation centre last week to the North Shore Winter Club. The Lonsdale curling rink, which doubles as an indoor katebeard: park inthe sum- r, will be renovated into a ew? larger ‘gym facility for ie gymnastics club. this Currently Flicka, a non- rofit organization, uses the maller-aging facility ar the Memorial’ Recreation Centre tid has . been . looking ‘to ce it for several’ years. The stalemate THE. following are bricf ummaries of topics on the zendas of North. Shore. municipalities: North’ Vancouver District | ‘Council: ‘Monday, July 19 at 7? pan delegations . from :: ~ snowboarding rescues /educa- ‘the Waterfront Task Force, © ‘North Shore Family. Court and Youth Justice Committee, and’ ’ Community ” debate has pitted curlers against the growing gymnastic club, when the real issue is the shortage of monies available from the North Vancouver Recreation Commission to build new facilities. As a result, the recreation commission is trying to use an existing curling facility at the Winter Club, which has more than enough room for both clubs’ members. Claiming the ree centre curling rink is suffering from low usage, Gary Young, dirce- tor of the Recreation Commission, contends that one big curling club encom- passing the North Shore Winter Ciub (NSWC) and the Lonsdale curlers atone facility is better than two smaller clubs. “We have a facility that is dramatically under-utilized at the Lonsdale recreation cen- tre. The reality is that there is very little time that the curling rink is being used overall,” Young said. ‘the Lonsdale curlers con- tend that the Recreation Commission should _ focus their attentions on finding another facility for Flicka. Many curlers don’t want to go a a private club like the North Shore Winter Club — even though they won’t have ‘to pay membership dues like other clab members. Most are concerned that the amenities district. of North Vancouver and Vancouver Port - Corporation. West Vancouver District Council: Monday, July 19 at 7:30 p.m. — delegation from Cypress Bowl Recreations, re "4 agreement; “fequest”. § ‘Vancouver ; -hood ers Still disgruntled al and flexible scheduling they enjoyed at the Lonsdale cen- tre won't be available at the Winter Club. In a letter to the Recreation Commission, the curling club executive sug- gests the Winter Club has a record of financial instability, inadequate parking and insuf- ficient childcare. Other mem- bers are concerned about the development of junior curling and the availability of space during the 7 to 9 p.m. prime time weekday evenings. Both Winter Club = man- agement and Young maintain that the issue of sufficient rink time during prime time hours shouldn’t ‘be much of a prob- lem after the two clubs sit down and sort their schedules out. “The Winter Club has pretty well agreed that in prime time they can host most of the Lonsdale club’s activi- ties. Does that mean it’s going to be on exactly the same sme (as they had before)? Probably not,” Young said. : Many curlers don’t want to disparage the North Shore Winter Club because as far as they’re concerned, that’s not the cenrral issue, and they are reluctant to exacerbate the issue by speaking out. The curling club’s letter to the Recreation Commission, however, contends that “If curling disappears from a pub- tion program, planning study re impact of ‘proposed BC Ferries facilitics in Horseshoe Bay avea; community grant allocations; Marine Dr. medi- an rehabilitation; rezoning application for neighbour- public house, lic facility and is relocated to a Privately-run facility, curling will no longer be a publicly available sport, because the general public will never see it.” Bruce Marks, who man- ages the Winter Club, said his club, although technically pri- vate, has always had an affilia- tion with public recreation and sports. Uniike the Hollyburn Country Club, the North Shore Winter Club has pro- vided public access in the form of group lessons for junior tennis players and spring and summer skaters for years. © Young said that all this dis- cussion about private and public clubs needs to be clari- fied, so that the Lonsdale curlers will embrace their new home at the NSWC instead of travelling over the bridge to other facilities or worse yet, give up their sport. “A private chib is a club where unless you’re a member you can’t go in. That’s not the case at the Winter Club. Curling is a public activity there,” Young said. According to statistics pro- vided by the Recreation Commission, annua) curling visits by individuals to the Lonsdale rec centre have increased from 13,000 in 1996 co just over 24,000 visits in 1998. “Our public visits have Dundarave Cafe; upper lands study update; fire protection bylaw; request for liquor licence, Alborz Restaurant. Sunday, July 18, 1999 — North Shore News — ut new home gone up 50% in three years. Our membership has gone up and we can prove that,” said local curler Janis Ross. Although the Lonsdale curling rink operated at a $142,000 loss in 1998, most recreation centres lose money — and many lose even more than that figure annually. Only the Mickey McDougal! reere- ation centre actually turns a profit on the North Shore. “We're responsible to the taxpayer that the facilities are being maximized. By moving the curlers to the Winter Club we're not removing the opportunity for public curl- ing; quite the opposite. We're ensuring that there is public 13 curling at the winter club,” Young said. Plans are currently under- way to renovate the Lonsdale centre for — Flicka in September, and the gymnas- tics club will be negotiating a lease with the recreation com- mission after the indoor skate- board facility closes at the end of August. 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