New indoor soccer facility in Thunder Bay, Ont., hopes to open doors this year

Thunder Bay's indoor soccer players could be taking the field inside a brand-new indoor turf facility later this year.

Site clearing at the location of the proposed Goal Spots Centre II is underway, and if everything goes to plan, the building's doors could open as soon as December, said Carmen Felice, the facility's general manager.

"We were hoping, and a lot of it depends, too, on the weather, but we're hoping that within two-and-a-half months to three months the facility could be up," Felice said. "At the worst, we might be looking at right after Christmas, or even just before Christmas, something like that."

The building, Felice said, will be an air-supported dome, which will house a 190x150-foot fieldthat can be divided into two.

But soccer, Felice said, isn't the only proposed use.

"There will be other sports," he said. "Other organizations."

"We're looking at a multi-user facility."

• Work underway at indoor turf facility site in Thunder Bay, Ont.

Felice said the project is being funded by private investors. He didn't know how much it's expected to cost.

The City of Thunder Bay has begun moving forward with its own multi-use turf facility, but Felice said there's room for both.

"If something is not done immediately for all the different sports, the number of participants will keep dropping," Felice said.

Space to play many indoor sports, such as soccer, during the winter months has been very hard to come by since the Sports Dome collapsed in November 2016.

"When we look at our sports, whether it's baseball, football, soccer, our summer season is only three months," Felice said. "Our winter season is the longest one, and all these groups, that's when they grow their numbers."

The Goal Sports Centre II will be located along Golf Links Road.