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HomeMy WebLinkAboutCSD-06-097 - Hanson Ave Twin Pad Arena Partnership and Progress Report ) R Community Services Report To: Date of Meeting: Submitted By: Prepared By: Ward(s) Involved: Date of Report: Report No.: Subject: Community Services Committee September 18, 2006 Keith Baulk, Director, Enterprise Division, 2393 Twin Pad Project and Fundraising Teams all September 5, 2006 CSD-06-097 HANSON AVE TWIN PAD ARENA PARTNERSHIP AND PROGRESS REPORT RECOMMENDATION: That the sport partner business case for the new Hanson Ave. Twin Pad Arena as appended to CSD Report #06-097 be accepted, and further; That PBK Architects be instructed to complete detailed construction drawings for a Twin Pad Arena on the Hanson Ave. site based on Option 3 at an additional architectural budget of $85,000 but that the other options be retained for further consideration pending the fundraising review, and further; That staff be directed to obtain the necessary site plan approvals and proceed to grading the site at a budget of $500,000, and further; That the sport partners, Kitchener Minor Hockey Association (KMHA) and Waterloo Region Boxing Academy (WRBA) undertake to qualify the fundraising capacity of the community and develop a fundraising plan with a goal of offsetting the additional incremental costs associated with the amenities over and above those outlined in the original business case and that such fundraising plan be subject to approval of Council, and further; That staff report back in January of 2007 outlining the results of the community fundraising capacity analysis and fundraising plan along with a final recommendation on which option should proceed to construction. BACKGROUND: Council, on January 30th, 2006 directed staff to proceed to the design/development phase of a new Twin Pad arena on the Hanson Ave. site at a preliminary budget estimate of $15.5 million. CSD-06-097 - 2 - In addition, $300,000 was added during the capital budget process for a major roadway linkage making the total initial budget $15.8 million (b/c class budget, +/- 150/0 to 250/0). Staff was also directed to engage an architect and construction manager to complete the concept design and refine the cost estimates. Council was advised that staff would consult with the two primary stakeholders, KMHA and WRBA during the design/development phase. You will recall KMHA was interested in centralizing their operations by locating their offices and storage needs at the new facility. The Boxing Club had expressed interest in the development of a permanent facility for their programming. A project team was formed for the design process and to develop a business case for the specific sport partner needs. The project team included staff from virtually all departments, the architectural firm, cost consultant/construction manager firm and sport partner representatives. Council was also advised that the sport partners committed to assist with fundraising for the project. The partners engaged John Thompson (retired CEO of the United Way) to develop the plan and recruited Peter Benninger to be the volunteer chair for the fundraising campaign. The fundraising team has commenced work developing the plan and process. REPORT: DETAILED DESIGN/COSTING The project team, including the stakeholders met on 12 occasions to provide input and direction on the concept design for the new Twin Pad. In addition, there was a public open house on June 28, 2006 where citizens were invited to comment on design options and amenities. A total of 26 attended the open house. Overall, the process was intensive and inclusive and while the recommended L-shaped basic design has significant support, there are four options for various levels of additional amenities that were identified during the in-depth consultations with the sport partners and the public. These four options are outlined in the "Amenities Decision Matrix" in Section 6 of the attached sport partners business case. These options range from the basic Twin Pad presented in the original business case to a multi-use sports complex that includes all the needs of KMHA, a facility for the WRBA and a community use walking track. The budgets range from $15.8 million to $19.7 million. FOUR AMENITIES OPTIONS Staff is confident, based on costing information to date, that a B/C class 80,000 sq. ft. Twin Pad facility can be delivered within the original $15.8 million budget as outlined in the original business case presented in January 2006. This includes provisions for the basic requirements of KMHA and is outlined as Option 1 in the matrix. Option 2 includes revised or additional amenities for KMHA that arose during the in-depth consultations. These include additional dressing rooms and a larger meeting space. This adds approximately 3,717 sq. ft. of additional space to the basic requirements outlined in Option 1, at a cost of approximately $600,000 for a total project budget of $16.4 million. CSD-06-097 - 3 - Option 3 includes the additional amenities requested by KMHA along with a new 7,265 sq. ft. facility for the WRBA. The boxing facility would include a main gym, offices and a weight training room for its athletes and on its own would require a budget of $1.1 million. Option 3 adds 1 0,985 sq. ft. to the size of the basic facility at an additional cost of approximately $1 .7 million for a total project budget of $17.5 million. Option 4 includes the WRBA facility, the additional KMHA amenities and a community use walking track. While not their priority, interest was expressed in the track by the sport partner representatives and there was some interest from a few citizens at the public open house. The track adds nearly 15,000 sq. ft. to the project at a cost of $2.2 million. When the KMHA and WRBA amenities are included, Option 4 requires an additional $3.9 budget over the basic Twin Pad described in the original business case for a total project budget of $19.7 million. FUNDRAISING CAPITAL CAMPAIGN The sport partner fundraising campaign planning process is underway. A total of 12 meetings have taken place. The sport partners have been proceeding on the understanding that the goal of the fundraising campaign is to offset the cost of additional amenities outlined in Options 2, 3 and/or 4 so that the City's budget commitment remains at $15.8 million. As a result, the fundraising goal would need to be between $600,000 and $3.9 million if direction is given to proceed with an option that includes additional amenities. While the chance of success increases as the fundraising target decreases, the fundraising team has confidence that a significant capital goal can be achieved. This is based on a pre- commitment of $400,000 from the sport partners and the experience of the fundraising team leaders with fundraising outcomes for similar facilities and campaigns. However, the final fundraising target needs to be established. In order to "qualify" the fundraising capacity for this project, the sport partners fundraising team has engaged "Campaign Coaches" (fundraising consultants) to undertake the process of qualifying the potential fundraising target for this project. That process will be completed by the beginning of December. The fundraising plan will include an appropriate (arms length) review and statement of the strengths and weaknesses of KMHA and WRBA and their capacity to meet the fundraising goals. Staff will then present a report in January 2007 recommending the preferred option (and hence the amenities) for the Twin Pad project. It is expected the recommendation will be linked to the qualified fundraising capacity so that fundraising dollars can offset the cost of any additional amenities thus allowing Council's commitment to remain at $15.8 million. It should be noted that if Council in January 2007, decides to proceed with an option other than Option 3, a design revision would cost in the range of $30,000. The revision would take about 4 weeks to complete which would provide adequate time to tender prior to April/May of 2007, thus keeping the project on schedule. OPPORTUNITIES~ RISKS AND COSTS There are significant opportunities and some risks associated with this project and approach. The opportunities are as follows: CSD-06-097 - 4- · The Twin Pad begins to address the ice pad demand identified in the recently completed LFMP and the ice demand study · KMHA can centralize their administration and logistical operations to become a more effective organization · WRBA will have a permanent facility for the first time in their history to improve, expand and bring long term stability to the program · Both Boxing and Hockey have pre committed funds in the range of $200,000 each · A walking track could be included that serves the broader community to make the facility more inclusive The additional costs in the next stage to keep the project on schedule, include the following: · Additional percentage fee to the Architect of $85,000 to design the facility with Option 3 amenities · Site grading at a budget of $500,000 · A potential additional cost of approximately $30,000 to revise the working drawings if Council instructs staff in January to proceed with an option other than #3 The risks are as follows: · The fundraising campaign based on the staff recommendation outlined in this report would require $600,000 to $3.9 million dollars depending on which option Council ultimately selects · Final construction costs are not fully known until tendering the project is complete · Continuing to invest in project components (site grading, detailed design etc.) in absence of final project approval TIMELINES Section 3 of the business case provides a work plan outlining timelines leading to completion of the facility. The recommendation in this report allows staff to continue to meet these timelines to ensure completion of the facility by June 2008 so it can be commissioned and fully ready for the 2008/09 hockey season. FINANCIAL IMPLICATIONS: Staff is confident the projected budget of $15.8 for a basic 80,000 sq. ft. Twin Pad can be achieved. Costs for additional amenities identified during the stakeholder and public consultation could add $600,000 to $3.9 million to the project, depending on the scope of the amenities approved. The sport partners fundraising team will qualify fundraising capacity in the community. The general goal will be to develop a campaign goal based on the fundraising capacity and then have that offset the cost of any additional amenities. This way the City's contribution to the project could remain at $15.8 including development charge revenue. At the very least, by qualifying the fundraising target it will allow Council to make a decision in January, 2007 about any additional tax subsidy for adding amenities with all the financial information at hand. A more detailed project budget breakdown is included in the business case. Because the recommendation directs the architect to proceed to detailed construction drawings for Option #3 at an additional budget of $1.7 million, additional percentage architect fees are CSD-06-097 - 5 - payable due to this increase in scope. The additional fees amount to $85,000. The $85,000 fee is in fact part of the $1.7 million budget so it would be paid for through the fundraising program. The only risk is if Council directs staff to proceed with Option 1 (not increase the scope) then the partners may not undertake a fundraising program and the extra architectural cost may have to be covered as an add on to the basic Twin Pad budget. In any event, staff is recommending that Purchasing be given authority to increase the fee payable to PBK Architects to complete the drawings for the increased scope outlined in Option #3. The report recommendation includes direction to proceed to site grading at a budget of $500,000. In addition, there could be additional costs of approximately $30,000 associated with completing a revised set of drawings should Council direct staff to deliver another option in January, following delivery of the fundraising capacity. COMMUNICATIONS: Extensive consultation has taken place. The concept design project team, which includes members of both KMHA and WRBA has met a total of 12 times. The result is an inclusive and well thought out facility design. The sport partners fundraising team process has been facilitated by staff. The sport partners have engaged John Thompson to assist them in developing the plan and have also met 12 times under his leadership. They have also recruited Peter Benninger to be the volunteer chair of the Fundraising Committee. In addition, a public open house was held on June 28, 2006 to solicit feedback on design and amenities and neighbourhood linkages to the facility (an in-depth neighbourhood connectivity study was completed and is included as a separate document with the business case). Dave Bennett, Manager of Planning and Capital Construction Services for the Waterloo Catholic District School Board has been consulted (to provide input on linkage, design and potential usage) along with representatives of Oktoberfest (to provide input as a potential festhall option depending on the final disposition of Queensmount arena). CONCLUSION: The project continues to proceed on schedule and be on budget (basic B/C class 80,000 sq. ft. Twin Pad option as presented in the original business case). A number of major potential amenities were identified during the stakeholder and consultation phase. The goal will be to determine what amenities can be funded through a well planned and qualified fundraising program. While work on the fundraising program takes place, staff is recommending that the detailed construction drawings be completed for Option 3 in the amenities matrix and that site grading proceed. If Council directs staff in January 2007 to construct another option, the revision will cost approximately $30,000 and take 4 weeks to complete. This will allow the project to continue on schedule with the intention of completing construction by mid 2008. Keith Baulk Director Enterprise Division, Community Services