Stellarton is one step closer to a new multi-use recreation centre

Stellarton, N.S., is onestep closer to transformingits former ice rink into a new modern community centre with multiple sport courts.

A $2 million investment in the Stellarton Memorial Community Centre Association project from the province will help restore the exterior of the building and reconfigure the interior.

"It'll absolutely be a great indoor facility, a multi-functioning and efficientand affordable place for well-needed indoor recreation for sports and otherwise," said Darren Stroud, president of the association.

According to the town's website, the rink was built and gifted to the town by coal minersin 1947. It closed in 2019 after the town determined it couldn't afford to modernize it.

The town sold the rink to the association for $1 in 2020. Since fall of that year, the community both monetarily and in kind has raised more than $200,000 for the centre, Stroud said.

While the space could be two or three years away from opening, Stroud said there is a high demand for more indoor recreational space, with local sports teams competing to use the limited space currentlyavailable in high school gyms.

"I would really like to highlight the fact that this is a broadly community-focused project, so everyone involved with it is just thrilled with the idea of it being a well-needed indoor facility that's going to address the needs of the broader community, Stellarton and beyond," Stroud said.