05/25/2025
We are very excited that this project is becoming more public knowledge. This is something the City of Sarnia desperately needs and we are happy to have provided design and drawings to date.
A quartet of sports groups in Sarnia are pitching a new recreation complex.
Kenneth MacAlpine, with the Bluewater Cycling Organization, said his group, the Sarnia Lambton Pickleball Club, Sarnia Tennis Club, and Sarnia FC (Football Club) have been crafting development plans for an 11-hectare (27-acre) parcel off Michigan Avenue for the past 18 months.
They’ve applied for a provincial community sport and recreation infrastructure fund grant to cover up to 50 per cent of the estimated $20-million project, put up $120,000 of their own money to start an environmental study of the lands, received support from Sarnia-Lambton MPP Bob Bailey as they’ve been working with the Ministry of Environment, Conservation and Parks and City of Sarnia staff, and reached a conditional deal to purchase the property, he said.
Now, they’re asking city council to help.
Group representatives are asking for $100,000 Monday, to start other requisite studies.
With council’s endorsement, and provided traffic studies and others also turn out favourably, hopes are to begin construction in 2026, MacAlpine said.
“We’d like to do a private-public (partnership) with (the city), subject to council’s approval,” he said.
Collectively the groups have more than 2,000 members and there are others, like volleyball and basketball clubs, also interested, he said.
“We feel comfortable that if this facility gets built the way we’re imagining it, we could have 5,000, 6,000 people approximately through there,” he said.
“And it would be pretty easy to fill to that magnitude.”
Now, they’re asking city council to help.
Group representatives are asking for $100,000 Monday, to start other requisite studies.
With council’s endorsement, and provided traffic studies and others also turn out favourably, hopes are to begin construction in 2026, MacAlpine said.
“We’d like to do a private-public (partnership) with (the city), subject to council’s approval,” he said.
Collectively the groups have more than 2,000 members and there are others, like volleyball and basketball clubs, also interested, he said.
“We feel comfortable that if this facility gets built the way we’re imagining it, we could have 5,000, 6,000 people approximately through there,” he said.
“And it would be pretty easy to fill to that magnitude.”
Council approved concept plans for an estimated $26-to-$34-million indoor facility in 2022, but a site selection process has been stalled, and no funding has yet been allocated for that project.
With the estimated cheaper overall bill, potential grant funding in the works, and plans for a community fundraising campaign, the dome idea is more achievable, MacAlpine said.
Plans would be to form a not-for-profit or charitable organization to hold the land and the buildings, he said.
“We want it to be a place that’s very accessible for youth and affordable for youth,” he said.
The grant they’re seeking is specifically for communities without adequate sport and recreation facilities, he said.
Moving forward depends on council approval, grant money materializing, and the environmental study and others returning favourable results, he said.
In a news release, Bailey said he’ll continue to work to help secure the grant funding.
“I’m extremely supportive of this exciting project,” he said. “It would serve as a cornerstone for both recreational and competitive sports in our community.”
MacAlpine called it more than a place to play sports.
“It is a hub where families, neighbours and friends can come together to enjoy a healthier, more active and connected community,” he said.
