Why doesn’t the Charlotte County Civic include a second ice surface?
Although there are some very inconvenient user times in the current Border Arena and in fact a slight shortage, it is very difficult to predict future needs, particularly when there is stated ice time available in St. Andrews. Demographics in the school system would clearly suggest a declining youth population in the future. There are opportunities to expand existing programs and to add new ones, but this is very difficult to quantify. The additional $4 million capital cost to build a second new ice surface might have compromised the whole project. The best compromise we could find was to recommend the continuance of the Border Arena as a limited season second ice surface beyond the opening of the Civic Centre. Capital costs and operating costs would be as low as possible and we would have the opportunity to prove the need for a second ice surface, or not. The decision to continue to operate the Border Arena belongs to the Town of St. Stephen and must be based on known and potential fu
