City of Greater Sudbury staff is recommending that councillors approve a nearly $360,000 roof repair at the Sudbury Community Arena.
The nearly 70-year-old building has some leaks in its roof that were identified by city staff back in 2018, affecting areas of the main lobby, VIP/Catering room, Eastlink broadcast area/Sudbury 5 ticket office, lower level training room and coach’s office/washroom.
The south end areas (VIP on the west, and ticketing on the east) have been repaired on several occasions in the last few years, but the condition of the roof system has deteriorated to the point that they are no longer able to be repaired, and the staff report indicates that partial replacement is the only option available.
In late 2019 and into 2020, additional leaks were reported to be reoccurring in the south areas of the building. Upon review by a roofing contractor, City of Greater Sudbury staff were advised that the main roofing membrane has failed in those areas identified and that the insulation between the membrane and the plastic covering the metal roof is saturated with water.
In February 2020, Sudbury Community Arena tenants (Sudbury Wolves/Sudbury Five) reported the presence of water in tenant areas as well as the suspected presence of mold. City staff hired a firm who tested the air quality and tested for mold/asbestos.
The mold and air quality report confirmed the presence of mold in all four areas as well as asbestos in the Eastlink room / Sudbury Five office. Tenant staff working in those areas were relocated. Further, alternate arrangements for broadcasting the Wolves/Five games were made as the Eastlink broadcast room was unavailable due to the conditions.
During the period of May and June 2020, contractors removed the materials that were damaged by the roof leaks and the mold/asbestos has been remediated. Restoration work remains outstanding. The cost of remediation was approximately $23,500.
The staff report will be headed to the Finance and Administration committee on Aug. 11. The total project cost has been estimated at $359,500 - $310,000 for roof repairs, plus $26,000 for the interior repairs and an additional $26,500 for remediation.
Funding for this project would be sourced from the Capital General Holding Account Reserve, and any requests from this reserve fund in excess of $250,000 must be given council approval.
The arena is currently closed, and the report indicates that these repairs would ideally commence prior to the next winter season. The OHL announced on Aug. 5 that plans are in place to return to play by this December for the 2020-21 season (https://www.sudbury.com/sports/wolves-return-to-the-ice-in-december-2615200).
Additionally, the building's other tenant, the Sudbury Five recently announced that their intentions are to resume play in the National Basketball League of Canada this December.
