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A home for minor hockey

Young hockey players in Okotoks will soon have a place to call home. The Okotoks Minor Hockey association will get office space in an expanded Pason Centennial Arena after a new agreement with town council.
Okotoks Minor Hockey Association has been granted its request to have office space in the Pason Centennial Arena expansion, set to begin this fall. The organization will pay
Okotoks Minor Hockey Association has been granted its request to have office space in the Pason Centennial Arena expansion, set to begin this fall. The organization will pay the $250,000 for construction.

Young hockey players in Okotoks will soon have a place to call home.

The Okotoks Minor Hockey association will get office space in an expanded Pason Centennial Arena after a new agreement with town council.

The deal will allow the green and gold to have a presence in the rink with their colours and open the door to an advertising agreement that will give the association a percentage of dollars raised with rink board and wall advertising in the expanded arena.

Jeremy Gough, president of the OMHA, said the partnership with the Town will allow the organization to have a steady presence in the community and allow for its growth. The OMHA membership climbs every year, increasing another six per cent for the 2016-2017 season – a total of about 1,400 young hockey players.

“We are the biggest user, but our scale inside the arenas as opposed to other users is very minimal,” Gough told council on Sept. 12. “There isn’t an existing space in that centre for us to be able to use, but there’s an opportunity, looking at plans that set forward, to add on to that space.”

OMHA proposed an add-on to the Pason expansion to allow for a 600-square-foot office space with a second storey above a meeting room planned with the expansion.

Gough said the organization is prepared to pay for the addition. Through its annual Jeans and Jerseys fundraisers and other initiatives like Kraft Hockeyville last February, OMHA has raised $137,000 toward the $250,000 cost of the addition, he said.

Council approved adding office space for OMHA to the Pason expansion. For the first three years of the 10-year agreement, OMHA will reside in the arena for free in recognition of their financial contribution. For the remaining years of the contract, the organization will pay a lease to cover utility costs.

Gough said having the office space will allow the two full-time employees of OMHA and its 14 volunteers on the executive to operate in a central location and have a face to the public and membership. It will also save the organization money they currently spent on renting space in town, he said.

“Having that presence, having a permanent address, having time where people can come see us at this office for registration, all housed underneath the one facility, having staff there all the time, it’s all going to be great for OMHA,” Gough said.

As for the colours in the arena, he said he can’t wait to see the Okotoks Oilers colours on the bleachers at the new NHL-sized ice surface, and possibly on some of the walls as well.

“It’s that branding of the green and gold that we have been for many years,” said Gough. “It brings a little bit of history and ownership. It’s just nice our kids can look at these colours and say, ‘This is our home.’”

Okotoks community services director Susan Laurin said adding OMHA colours to the expansion will give the hockey players a sense of place and pride in their organization.

“It gives a home and a presence to all of the 1,400 kids in minor hockey who play,” said Laurin. “It’s, ‘This is my rink, this is my home, this is my community,’ and that’s a very good thing for the community overall.”

Putting green bench caps on the bleachers, seats to cover the aluminum, can be done at no extra charge because the caps were a planned expense and green is one of the colours they happen to come in, she said. However, if OMHA decided they wanted to have a different shade of green or go for gold, they would have to pay the upcharge, she said.

The same goes for the dressing rooms, she said, where OMHA may choose to paint green or gold walls instead of neutral-coloured paint. They could also add the organization logo, but all of the extra fees would be covered by OMHA, she said.

Providing the opportunity for OMHA to make the new rink their home ice will benefit the entire community by instilling a sense of pride, she said.

“I think as we develop these relationships with our neighbours and user groups in the community, it brings a unified community spirit,” said Laurin.

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