Cultural Centre FAQ

Have final plans been drawn up?

 

Yes, The interior of specific rooms, like the kitchen, are still being determined.

 

Where is the balance of the money coming from?

 

The money to build the facility will come from grants, sponsorships and donations.

 

If we use the MSI funds, what will be lacking in the community?

 

The Town adopts and uses a 10 year capital plan, all projects planned for are still included in the capital plan.  No projects have been eliminated, because MSI grants are being applied to this Cultural Centre.

 

What will be the interior structure?

 

The interior walls are WIA – 45 min rated interior wall – ABC 2006 -A-9.010.3.1A

 

Who will be manning the building?

 

The building will be looked after by our present facility manager.

 

What will the hours of operation be?

 

In the beginning the facility will be open when in use. The library will be open regular library hours, the Youth Centre at specific time in the evenings.  The other rooms will, like the present community centre, be available for rent seven days a week.

 

Are the “skateboard parks” going to be repaired? (noted because they indicate that these parks, in addition to the outdoor ball/ice hockey arena, were used as a selling feature) also, since they indicated that the previous park was made of wood and vandalised, will they use concrete this time?

 

Yes, the plan is to eventually look at creating an in ground cement structure similar to the one in Fort Saskatchewan.

 

Will their Town staff occupying the new office space?

 

There are no plans for Town staff to be housed in the Cultural Centre in the near or mid-term.   The Town of Gibbons has sufficient room for the next 10-20 years for staff.

 

The operating cost of the new center is listed at $90k per year. How much is the insurance for the building and how does this add into the $90k per year operating cost??

 

Insurance is approximately 12% of that total.

 

Where will the funding come from if projected opening date is delayed due to weather delays in construction?

 

We have not included any revenue in our totals, so we will not lose any revenue due to delays. Construction delays will be absorbed by the contractor.

 

How will we ensure the security of the building during the times that it is open, and during times when the Teen Centre will be open?

 

The building is designed with multiple interior hallways doors which can be locked when certain sections of the building are not in use.  Included in the cost quotes is a multiple door card lock system which can be manipulated online from the office. This will allow timed access to specific sections that can be revoked instantly if necessary.

Also our Youth centre is fully supervised when open.

 

They mention a child minding room.  Is this going to house a preschool or be more of a drop off for parents when using the facility?  If so, who will staff it? Have they looked into licensing and what is required for a child-care facility (ie separate spaces based on age groups, changing areas for infants, boy and girl washrooms, staff washrooms, etc?) How might these requirements factor into the overall cost of the building?

 

The early childhood room will be available for many uses. We anticipate that it might be used by groups like Parent Link for their morning parent programs or the Health Unit for new parent seminars. It could also be rented by a playschool organization, if they were willing to share the room.

It will not, at least in the beginning be a day care facility or a drop off area for parents. It could be rented out during a wedding or other large function for people to set up child care for their own children.

 

Considering how the Pottery Guild already has difficulty paying their rent at the arena, how can they be expected to pay for a larger room?

 

The Town has been working with the Pottery Guild to see that they are successful. The Guild has agreed to allow the room to be used by other art type groups, which should take some of the pressure off of them.

Having a kiln in the new building will surely require special building requirements, for safety.  Has this been included in building costs? Also, insurance costs will surely reflect having this kiln, who will pay for the increased costs? Also, has the costs of operating the kiln been factored into the operational costs as well?

 

Yes, there are special requirements for any type of heating equipment like kilns or kitchen stoves. All code issues are being handled by the engineer in charge of the project.  The insurance and operating cost of the kiln are looked after by the Pottery Club.

 

The old Community Hall has just received upgrades due to vandals, as this Hall will no longer be required when the new cultural center is built, what will happen to the old Hall? *sold & $$ towards new building?

 

Usage patterns suggest the old Community Hall still serves a purpose and will be used, but we have not made any decisions about the use of the existing community centre at this time. Please note that no renovations have been done to the community centre recently. After the vandalism the door and the drywall in the entrance hallway and the glass on one of the coolers were repaired.

How many times did they meet and can we have the meeting minutes?

 

The result of the meetings are Gibbons Sustainability Plan and this initiative.  Again meetings occurred over an extended period.  All minutes and are to the public for review.

 

Also how much total MSI funding do we get above what is being earmarked for this project?

 

Gibbons has approximately $500,000 in MSI funding over and above this project.

 

Why hasn’t flooring type been a priority since it determines whether recreation (volleyball/basketball/running) can be performed here as well as determines whether outside groups running classes (Zumba, Karate, etc) can be held there (rented out to generate revenue)?

 

We are building a new larger community hall for the area. It was never slated to be a recreational facility, but because of the foresight of council, the walls will be reinforced so it will be able to be used for exercise classes, dry land training and walking.

 

Also, if the council choices to use a smooth cement floor, is there going to be the recreational activities (volleyball, basketball, running track) still implemented as well as what is the council going to put into place to ensure the safety of the users?

 

If the floor, which is finally chosen, is not suitable for specify types of sports they will not be played in the banquet room.

 

Are there concerns about major lawsuits if someone gets injured due to their poor planning (i.e. offering volleyball on cement)? Also, what is being done to protect the citizens if a lawsuit is filed against the town due to them not offering the proper facility for these sports?

 

All municipalities are required to carry liability insurance for all of it’s facilities.  The staff for the Town of Gibbons are competent, professional people, and know how to plan.

 

Why is this building being called a cultural centre? What is its cultural component?

 

The library, pottery guild/art room and banquet area which will have a portable stage for art and cultural events and productions.

 

Have they considered building a playground close by (maybe instead of fixing one of the old vandalised ones[tear it down instead]) so that it is a family-friendly centre and place of gathering? (also, then the child-minding (drop-in/preschool) people can access it as well.

 

The existing playground and the land it is built on belongs to the Sturgeon School Division.

 

Will the FCSS will be ‘housed’ out of the Cultural Centre?

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There are no plans for Town staff to be house in the Cultural Centre at this time.

 

What is the town going to do to cover any unforeseen costs that may be associated with the new building? (Ie: extra operational costs, unforeseen maintenance issues etc.)

 

The Town is confident in both its capital and operating estimates.  The capital portion is a locked in tender bid, whereby the contractor is liable for any cost over-runs.  The operating cost is based on similar sized buildings in similar municipalities.   As with any or all activities carried out by your Town, there is always, always a possibility that some program, equipment, or service could have a cost overrun.  On the rare occasion this does happen, monies have to be re-routed from other existed budgeted items.

 

If and when the building is in place, what town functions are going to be moved into it? Can Landing Trail school host their Christmas concert there? (Large function that is broken into two due to fire regulations)  Will the residents of Gibbons be able to use it, or will it be like the Arena with Time being sold to people, Teams, from Sherwood Park, Edmonton etc…?

 

The facility will become part of the town’s inventory to be rented by anyone who would like to rent it.  It’s anticipated that it will indeed be used for school concerts, Remembrance Day ceremonies and any other functions too large for our other facilities.

 

Will a breakdown of costs for this project including which grants and amount be posted here or on construct a dream?

 

As information becomes available it will posted on www.constructadream.ca

 

We fund raised a water park. The town was unhelpful with that too as I recall.

 

The spray park fundraising committee did a wonderful job managing to raise $50,419.00 towards the park. The Town added another $100,748.00 and applied for two grants on behalf of the fundraising committee with the Community Incentive Program for $50,000 and Community Facility Enhancement Program for $63,000.00 to complete the project. The total cost of the spray park was $264,167.00

 

I have heard that they may be able to open it (the cultural centre) to sports as they might be putting in reinforced walls portable basketball hoops etc.

 

Yes, the walls in the banquet area will be fortified with prefinished GIS plywood; this will allow the room to be used for some types of non-contact sports and dry land training.

 

I have heard that someone passed away and left money to the Town to build a pool/ that a group raised money for a pool but council used the money for something else?

 

When I (Lanny Boutin) was going door to door close to twelve years ago, I also heard these rumours. I came into the office at the time and was assured by the then CAO Maisie Metrunec that there was no truth to the rumours. Mayor Bill Nimmo and the previous Mayor George Fraser also told me that as far as they knew these rumours were untrue.

 

How many different community groups were involved in the March community meeting?

 

Fourteen groups sent representatives to the meeting; eight groups were not able to make it but sent their ideas which were incorporated into the evening’s discussion and two other groups were contacted after the meeting for their opinions. If you are interested in a list of the groups please see the April 13, 2011 meeting minutes posted at www.gibbons.ca. 

 

There seems to be a large emphasis on the multi-purpose room/banquet area for weddings.

Yes, we are building a new larger community hall for the area. It was never slated to be a recreational facility, but because of the foresight of council, the walls will be reinforce so it will be able to be used for exercise classes, dry land training and walking.

 

Also, now that we are opening a centre to hold these events and take away possible revenue for Landing Trail School, have you looked into what the potential impact might be on the school and our children? I am sure that money has been used to fund extra programing, resources, etc that they may not be getting now.

 

The new banquets room will be larger than Landing Trail’s Gym so it can be used for larger functions. Also the revenue from the evening programs and community rentals at Landing Trail School comes to the Town not the school so any changes will have no effect on school revenue.

 

I am very concerned about these smooth cement floors.

 

Based on usage patterns a decision will be made in the near future on what type of floor the banquet room will eventually have. Once the centre is completed we will look at what type of sports or programs can be held in it.

 

What will the proposed Centre look like?

 

The Cultural Centre will be built to match the existing Arena and Curling Rink, with the addition of a large glass and stone entrance facade at the west entrance.

 

How big is the Centre going to be?

 

The main floor is 120’ x 150’, about 18,000 square feet; the upper floor will be 120 ’x 90’ or about 10,800 square feet, with about 7,000 square feet of developable space up stairs, see floor plan

 

What will be in the building and available for sponsorship?

 

The building will include a library, youth center, pottery/art room, early education room, lounge, two meeting rooms, running/walking track and 450 person multi-use room with a kitchen, stage and bar. This multi use room could also be used for exercise programs or dry land training.

 

The new building will be connected via an indoor walkway to our existing arena and curling rink. There will be direct access to a playground, walking track, skateboard park, outdoor ice/ball hockey rink, ball diamonds and soccer fields.

 

Is the running track still happening?

 

Yes, the plans include a walking track on the floor of the multi-use room.

 

Will the pottery/art room be used solely by the Pottery Guild or will other people have the opportunity to use it?

 

The Pottery Guild has agreed to let the facility be used by other art groups when the Guild is not using it.

 

Who else will use the facility?

 

We anticipate the facility will be used by residents of Gibbons and the surrounding area. We have been in contact with Sturgeon County and Bon Accord regarding their needs within the facility.

 

What programs are currently offered in Gibbons?

 

Gibbons currently runs a vast array of programs geared to all age groups.

 

Why is there no plans for an indoor soccer field?

 

The multi-use room will not be equipped with boards for either hockey or indoor soccer.

 

The walking track is listed on your website as a running track. With the floor smooth concrete, is calling it a running track accurate?

 

We have not determined the exact type of flooring in the multi-use room yet. As of June 2012, the contract states the floor is smooth concrete which may or may not be suitable for running.

 

What are the changes to the floor plan and why have changes been made?

 

We are just completing (July 2012) the last minute engineering work and some minor changes are inevitable. We are anticipating that any changes will be minor.

 

How long has Gibbons been looking at building this facility? Have there been any meetings with the community regarding the project?

 

The Town of Gibbons started looking at building a Community Cultural Centre in 2007 when grants became avail-able. The need for a new Centre was discussed again in 2009 and 2010 by the Citizen’s Advisory Group. This group was set up to create the new Sustainability Plan, Envision Gibbons. Approximately 25 residents representing various sectors of the community met more than seven times to look at the future of the Town. They identified the Centre as “an anchor and a catalyse for developing a new hub of activity” in the region.

 

This report and the feasibility of building the Centre were discussed numerous times in open Council meetings, plans were drawn up and a small model was created. Council and Staff were actively working towards building the Centre when the death of our long-term CAO rocked the Town.

 

In the fall of 2009 Council toured the Sprung Fabric Building Solutions Plant located just outside of Calgary. They subsequently decided, in an open meeting, to recommence the plans of building the Cultural Centre. A meeting was held with local community groups. In March 2011 to present a preliminary design of a community centre (created by Sprung) and obtain feedback. Twenty-four community organizations responded to the invitation. The question that was posed at that meeting was “What would your organization like to see in a new centre?”

 

A Request for Proposal for the Design Build of the Centre was circulated in December 2011. Council received numerous proposals and met with contractors for many months. Atkinson Constructing was selected and Council entered into negotiations to build the Centre. A Fundraising Committee was struck, and a new model of the center was commissioned. A website, www.constructadream.ca, was created to provide information and solicit input on the proposed Centre. This site is monitored regularly to receive input into the project.

 

 

On May 3, 2012, the Town held a successful Open House at the Community Centre. This meeting was heavily advertised. Approximately one hundred people took the time to come and celebrate the Centre. An open letter to the community was published in the local paper and the information presented at the Open House was distributed to every household in Gibbons. This information pamphlet and the model of the Community Cultural Centre are available in the lobby of the Town Office.

 

What is the anticipated cost of the Center?

 

On March 14th, 2012, the Gibbons Town Council agreed to enter into negotiations with a local builder to construct theCommunityCulturalCenter. Costs have been finalized at $3,438,718.00. In addition, we anticipate a cost of approximately $350,000 for interior furnishings, audio/visual equipment, fixtures, and landscaping. The total cost of this project is projected to be a total of $3.8 million dollars. We have collected $1,962,729.00 to date in grants, sponsorship, savings and private donations.

 

What will the cost of operating the building be?

 

We estimate it will cost approximately $90,000 per year to operate the new Cultural Centre building only.

 

How did we attain the estimate of $90,000 for operating the building?

 

We looked at the cost of operating similar buildings within the region.

 

What is the projected revenue per annum?

 

We have not looked at revenues from the Centre yet. No revenue was included in our total costs.

 

What is the cost difference between smooth concrete and a floor similar to a gym?

 

The flooring included in the initial plans is a non-polished, smooth concrete floor. The addition of a wooden floor similar to those found in a gym would add an additional $96,000.

 

How could this project affect my taxes?

 

The Cultural Centre will be 100% funded by grants, savings and donations. There will be zero increase in the Capital budget and 0% increase to the Town of Gibbons taxes to pay for the construction of this building. Interim project financing will be totally paid back by 2016 with future MSI Capital Grant (Municipal Sustainability Initiative) funds. The impact to the taxpayer will be approximately $6.08/month to support ongoing operating costs.

 

How many dollars have been secured so far?

 

To date we have approximately $1.9 million. This total includes a $500,000 grant from the Provincial Government, a $500,000 grant from Sturgeon County and $885,000 that the Town of Gibbons has saved for the project. We have also secured $77,350 in donations. Our fundraising committee is contacting local companies regarding naming rights to the building. To date (July 12, 2012) the committee is in negotiations with five other local companies for sponsorship.

 

What is the breakdown of the $77,350 exactly? Is it all cash?

 

The Fundraising Committee has received $2,350 in private donations and two sponsorships. One for $25,000 from Landing Trails Development for naming rights of the planned garden area and one for $50,000 from Agrium to name the Youth Center. We also have a tentative commitment for another sponsorship for $50,000 to sponsor the Lounge/Sitting room.

 

When will construction of the Centre be completed?

 

We project an opening date in late 2013.

 

What will the hours of the Centre be?

 

Specific hours will be determined based upon usage pattern and community feedback. In the future, as the Town grows, differing usage options will likely be looked at.

 

Where are the answers to the questions from the last Open House?

 

Questions that arose from the Open House have been addressed within the FAQ’s.

 

Why hasn’t there been a plebiscite regarding this project?

 

The citizens of Gibbons elect a Council every three years to govern and guide the community. This Council follows the mandate of the residents and represents the best interests of the whole community. Substantial feed-back from many residents has been received on this project and Council has reached the conclusion that this is a project that the majority of the Gibbons community wants.

 

What is the “breaking ground” date?

 

July 21, 2012, at 1 p.m. at the site of the new Cultural Centre, north of the Curling rink and arena.

 

Are additional public meetings planned?

 

There will be public information sessions through out the development of the project.

 

Updated July 25, 2012