Penticton Arena Task Force turns attention to securing grant funding

PENTICTON – Penticton’s Arena Task Force is working on a tight timeline as it seeks to secure up to $6 million in grant funding for replacement or refurbishing of the Memorial Arena.

The deadline for grant funding is July 30.

An open house is planned for June 28 between 4 p.m. and 8 p.m. at the Penticton Trade and Convention Centre to present the draft findings of the McLaren and Memorial Arena Study and the New Arena Feasibility Study. The study will also be available online at the City's website.

Workshops will be held in early July for the Task Force to develop the draft recommendation, with dates still to be determined. Task Force members will also be at the July 15 and July 22 community markets to hear public feedback on the draft recommendation.

A special meeting of council will take place on July 25 to review the draft recommendation to give city staff time to revise the grant application to reflect council’s decision prior to the July 30 deadline.

“This is a decision on what to include in the grant application. It’s an important step towards the final recommendation,” Mayor Andrew Jakubeit says in the release. He stresses it isn’t the final decision on the plan for Penticton’s arenas.

“We need to know the outcome of the grant application and fully understand all of our funding options before a decision can be made.”

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