Thistle Curling Club to merge with Deer Lodge CC, sell its current building

The Thistle Curling Club's time is ending at its current St. Matthews area home.

After months of speculation among members, the owners of the club have confirmed they are planning to sell the property on 280 Burnell St., just off Portage Ave., at the end of this season.It will be merging with the Deer Lodge Curling Club in St. James.

"This was a really hard decision to make and it is with mixed emotions that we announce the land and building which the Thistle Curling Club has called home for the last several years will be put up for sale,"the club's executivewroteon itswebsite.

The club held a meeting Tuesday night to break the news to members. While rumours had been swirling all season, it still took some by surprise.

"It's sad," facilities manager Nate Glover said. "It's been a big part of my life since like 2010 when I started working here."

Glover noted he hasn't been told if he or the other eight staff will have jobs next season.

"I wish there was a different way. I wish we had, like, a longer kick at the can, so to speak," he said.

The executives added the club wasfacing some financial pressures that made the current operation unsustainable, includingunaffordable major capital outlaysand significant losses throughout the pandemic.

"In the past couple of years, the land and buildings around the club have been purchased, unfortunately leaving us as the only building left. This would greatly affect the way the club would be able to conduct business," the website stated.

The ownersnoted the merger will help both clubs become stronger.

The clubs each have around 600 members, and will now share the ice atDeer Lodge's facilities onWoodlawn Street.

"There is the possibility of merging and forming larger, healthier leagues with some existing DLCC leagues that are low on curlers," the website stated.

Thistle will retain its name, which holds a significant place in Manitoba's curling history.

"As one of the very first clubs in western Canada, we thank the members and volunteers who called the Thistle their curling home for 135 years," CurlManitobaexecutive director Craig Baker told CBC News via email.

"At CurlManitoba, we believe that healthy clubs with strong, supportive memberships go a long way toward promoting and advancing the sport of curling."

There are close to 100 member clubs in Manitoba, according to CurlManitoba.

History of the Thistle

The 135-year-old club is also no stranger to moving.

The Thistle was founded in1887 by curlers who separated from the Granite Curling Club.The club has operated out of a number of different locations ever since.

From 1921 to 2006 it was run out of a building on Minto Street,however, the club was forced to moved after the building burned in an arson.

In 2007, Thistle and Valour Road Curling Club merged. The two clubs became one under the Thistle name, and continued to play out of the current building on Burnell Street.