Prince Albert City Council will receive reports from Administration on Monday concerning the development of the Arena and Aquatics Recreation Centre.  The reports recommend the approval of the Architects for the detailed design of the large 4500 seat Arena Event Centre and the purchase of another seven acres of land for additional parking on the site.

The conceptual design for the twin arenas and aquatics facilities was approved by City Council in March. Approval of the recommendations Monday will allow the project to proceed alongside the development of the twin arenas and aquatics project.

The recommended architects for the 4500 seat Arena and Event Centre is BBB and KSA Architects out of Toronto and Saskatoon. Their previous work includes Budweiser Gardens in London, Scotiabank Arena in Toronto, and Rogers Arena in Vancouver.

The land purchase will allow for a minimum of 1214 parking stalls to serve all phases of the project including the twin arenas, aquatics and large arena.  The cost of the land purchase is $2.537 million or $362,500/acre. The city says that is below market value compared to a recent commercial land sale in the area. These costs will be funded through the City’s Civic Facilities Reserve.

With the new land acquisition, the entire complex will be situated on 25 acres of an 80 acre parcel being developed as a commercial hub by locally owned Signature Development Corporation. The city says the location was selected because of its potential for future development and taxation revenue opportunities as complimentary businesses locate in the area to serve residents and visitors that attend for events and tournaments.