Photo: Contributed

Vernon will be getting a second sheet of ice at Kal Tire Place after Greater Vernon residents gave the project the go-ahead.

In referendum held Saturday, 4,265 people voted in favour of borrowing $13.25 million to add the second ice sheet, while 3,331 were against the idea. There are 47,000 eligible voters in the Greater Vernon area.

The second sheet of ice at the city's multiplex will replace the aged Civic Arena which needs more than $10 million on repairs.

However, the Civic will have to stay in operation for at least three more years while the new arena is built. Officials said the idea is to spend as little as possible to keep the nearly 80-year-old building operational until the new facility is ready to open.

Cameron Grant headed up an advocacy group that was pushing for yes vote leading up the referendum.

His main goal was getting the facts out to the voting public.

“When people had the facts, I knew they would get out there and vote yes,” said Grant, adding he was confident the majority of people wanted the new arena, but was concerned with voter apathy and that supporters might not come out to vote.

Grant said the average home owner would see a tax increase of around $2.40 a month.

“That is not a lot of money for a new arena,” he said, adding it just did not make sense to put millions of dollars in the Civic.

“It's never been kept up. It's not like they are giving up on it now, there was no foresight to put money away and keep it up with the times,” he said. “We need at least four ice surfaces in town and if we need four and the Civic fails we would be down to two.”

Grant said the second ice sheet will not only benefit user groups like hockey, ringette and speed skating, but tax payers in general because the city will not be constantly putting money into an aging building.

Cliff Lannon, with Vernon Ringette said "everyone I talked to ecstatic about the new rink. "There is a lot of issues with the Civic and it could fail. The sooner we get the new one up and running the less chance there is of losing an ice surface. If we went down to two, it would be quite drastic."

“I hope this vote signals a changing attitude in the voters of Vernon,” said Grant. “These types of facilities improve the quality of life for everyone in Vernon and surrounding area. They contribute positively in helping people of all ages keep active and stay active. They also add to the attractiveness of the city and can help bring young families and more business.”

Grant said he hopes people realize this isn't the last referendum either and that the positive vote is an indication people are changing their attitude about needed infrastructure in the city.

“There will be more, and when they come up, remember our old infrastructure and what attitude it took for things like the Civic to fall into disrepair. This wasn't just about an arena, it was also about changing attitudes,” he said. “There are things that are not here or need to be replaced and I hope when other things come up like the art gallery there is a change of attitude to help make our community a little better.”