Castlegar council approves reserve expenditure to advance arena project

Castlegar City Council has approved allocating approximately $116,000 from the Growing Communities Fund Reserve to support pre-construction work related to the Castlegar & District Community Complex Arena and Walking Track [...]

Castlegar council approves reserve expenditure to advance arena project Published 5:40 am Thursday, July 16, 2026 Castlegar City Council has approved allocating approximately $116,000 from the Growing Communities Fund Reserve to support pre-construction work related to the Castlegar & District Community Complex Arena and Walking Track Project. This fund is the remnants of a $3.1 million grant from the province gave the city in 2023. It can only be used for a limited set of purposes that support community infrastructure initiatives and one-time project investments.

Previous expenditures from the fund include $750,000 for South Sewage Treatment Plant upgrades, $1 million to support RNP implementation and capital upgrades at the West Kootenay Regional Airport and $1 million reserved for future strategic capital projects. The reserve has also earned interest over time, and that interest has been reinvested back into the reserve, leaving about $600,000 left in the fund. About $37,000 will be used to fund an additional honorarium so that three proponents can produce project proposals instead of two.

The RDCK, who operates the Castlegar Community Complex, is utilizing a two-stage procurement process for the project. It is currently entering the second stage – a Negotiated Request for Proposals. RDCK staff recommended increasing the honorarium budget from $100,000 to up to $150,000 in order to invite three qualified proponents from the first procurement stage.

A staff report says this approach improves procurement resilience, reduces the risk of receiving only one or no compliant proposals, and strengthens competitive tension and value-for-money evaluation. About $66,000 will be used to help pay for a geotechnical assessment of the property. A geotechnical assessment is now required earlier than originally planned, as proponents require site-specific information to prepare accurate design-build proposals.

Mayor Maria McFaddin pointed out that if this project should not go forward, the geotechnical assessment knowledge would still benefit the city as eventually something will likely be built on the land. About $13,000 will be used to help fund a fulsome public engagement process for the project. Regional District of Central Kootenay (RDCK)

Area J will also be contributing to these arena project measures in a proportional manner based on assessment values, with 73.5 per cent allocated to the City of Castlegar and 26.5 per cent allocated to Area J.