Sneak peek opportunity at Prince Albert aquatic and arenas recreation centre

The new Aquatic and Arenas Recreation Centre continues to take shape, and the City of Prince Albert is excited to show off the progress to residents.

“Our new recreation centre is beautiful and even more impressive up close and personal,” said Greg Dionne, Mayor of Prince Albert.

Members of the media were invited to tour the aquatic area to see all its features on Friday, where construction on the pool area is nearing completion.

“This project, in the last six months, has shown tremendous growth,” said Nicole Miller, engineering services manager. “We’ve seen now the finishing start to happen, and you can see all of the different features getting placed. The water slides going in, the ice surface being poured, you can see the vision that we had come into play.”

While the groundbreaking ceremony was held in July 2022, Dionne says the idea was born years ago.

“We negotiated and worked on this for ten years,” he said. “People think it’s happened overnight.”

• Get the CTV News app for Prince Albert breaking news alerts and top stories 

The aquatic centre features a 25-metre, eight-lane competition pool with starter blocks and diving boards.

Lifeguard stations and change rooms line one side of the aquatic centre while there is space for up to 200 spectators along the competition pool.

A lazy river and wave pool, splash pad, hot tub, and two waterslides complete the features of the aquatic centre.

All swim areas except for the waterslides are “zero-entry”, making the venue accessible. A pool lift will be installed in the competition pool.

“We met with so many different organizations and put it all together,” said Dionne. “And that's why I’ve got to thank our team led by Nicole Miller that brought this project all together.”

It’s projects like this one and the hospital that Dionne says will attract professionals to a growing city.

“If you don’t have amenities in your city, you’re not attracting good people to come and work,” he said. “They want to have a place where their kids can play.”

The facility sits on an 80-acre plot of land which Dionne says is crucial for generating new business, and tax revenue, for the city.

“I always say, we own 25 acres, the other 55 acres are taxes,” he said. “That’s what’s going to help us pay for the facility because they’re brand new.”

Miller says the project is currently on time and within budget.

“The completion of the project is still forecasted to be done at the end of 2024, early 2025,” she said. “But after that, the city gets the keys for it.”

Once the City of Prince Albert takes control of the building, it will need to complete the furnishing, training, and operations before opening to the public.

But residents are encouraged to get a sneak peek of the centre on Sunday, Sept. 29, and Sunday, Oct. 6 from 1 to 4 p.m.

“We encourage all our residents to come by on one of these Sundays and take the opportunity to see the centre,” said Dionne.