Mayor responds:

Hockey and ice-sports clubs worry

Since the news reported that the City will demolish the Robert Guertin Arena in Hull, Aylmer hockey and ice sports clubs have been concerned about the future  of their ice time. 

Mayor Maxime Pedneaud-Jobin commented on their worries to the Bulletin, “I understand the concerns of people living in west Gatineau, but we have some lead time, years even, before Guertin is demolished. Before demolition, we will make sure the ice time offer is good for western residents and that the transition goes smoothly.”

Today, Guertin  provides over 30 hours a week to west Gatineau minor hockey associations. The proposed arena at Place de la Cité, in Gatineau sector, will offer the missing ice time if no other arena project materializes in the West.

“It’s no secret that the Ottawa Senators are interested in building something in the West,” said Mr Pedneaud-Jobin. The Senators are considering building a multi-ice complex in the Plateau area.

This project, if it goes ahead, would answer Aylmer’s concerns as nobody from Aylmer wants to cross the Gatineau River after school to get to a hockey practice, for example.

Frank Robinson Arena?

The mayor also reassured Bulletin readers about the future of Aylmer’s Frank-Robinson Arena. The arena is aging and the city is considering demolishing arenas that have reached an age close to that of Frank-Robinson.

According to consultants hired by the city to evaluate municipal arenas, an arena reaches the end of its useful life after 50 years. Frank-Robinson was built in 1973 and is approaching that age. That same study reports that the facility condition index of the arena is 66%.

“We’ve invested $2.4M to renovate Aylmer arenas (Robinson-Duchesnay), so we’re not about to demolish them. This is a clear signal. In the short term, we have pressing issues with arenas  in Hull and Gatineau,” concluded the mayor.
(Trans.: CB)