Jumpstart Charities is trying to build a multisport court in Prince George that will be located near the Fire Hall on Massey Drive.
The charity gave a presentation at last night’s (Monday) city council meeting and will be investing $500,000 for the project if the City builds the court.
“It creates safe, welcoming environments. And the nice side benefit to this is that parents can feel like parents, and not have to worry that their children are going to be ostracized just because they have a disability,” said Marco Di Buono, Associate VP of Programs and Operations at Jumpstart Charities
The project won’t be started until next year but will support accessibility by having features like contrasting colours for the visually impaired, wheelchair-accessible seating, four double-wide entry points, and overhead LED lighting.
Six fixed height and two adjustable basketball nets, a tennis net, and lines for basketball, tennis, and hockey will be featured on the first court.
The second court will have an adjustable net, lines for volleyball, pickleball, and badminton, and high contrast hopscotch, and a four-square court.
A plastic tarp can be pulled across the court and the space can be turned into a rink during the winter.
There are three courts like this being installed across Canada this year.
This project will cover about 13,200 square feet.
The City would be in charge of site preparation, doing a geotechnical survey, excavation, clearing, leveling and compaction, supply and installation of the asphalt, and running wire for the LED lights.
Councillor Brian Skakun was a little concerned about the costs that would result from this project and wants a more in-depth report for what the City would be held accountable for.
“It’s a good initiative but I think we need to ask some tough questions.”
Di Buono believed the cost for the City would be less than $280,000, but Skakun was still thinking the cost could hit about $300,000.
Councillor Cori Ramsay said that if the project goes through that she would like the City Accessibility Committee to be looped into the process to learn more about accessibility projects.
“I know that group and I think they will be thrilled at that. So thank you so much, I will absolutely support it. I look forward to seeing this come in full form at budget, but it’s such a generous donation to our city.”
The project will be taken into consideration when the budget for 2022 comes to council, and if it gets the green light it is estimated to be finished next year.
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