Leaks, cracks at Civic

They are keeping it going, but the problems keep on coming.

City of Vernon staff opened the Civic Arena to media, Friday, highlighting issues such as cracks in the walls, roof joist connections, water leaks, erosion, broken toilets, heat shield failures, and an aging ice plant.

It will cost $160,000 to maintain the arena this year, about the same as Kal Tire Place, but that amount is expected to rise to more than $196,000 in 2016. Staff say twinning Kal Tire Place would significantly reduce costs.

“We have at least three more years to keep this facility operational,” said Doug Ross, director of recreation services.

That is, if Greater Vernon residents OK the $13.25-million price tag for the new ice sheet in a Nov. 28 referendum.

Staff are concerned one of the systems at the Civic could fail, impacting user groups. The big one is the brine system under the ice sheet.

“The pipes are very old, and they are down to 40 percent wall integrity. The rest has eroded,” said Ross. “We also have a heaving floor with shifting soil here. We can get heaving up to four, five, six inches in some places, and so when you combine those two things, you could eventually end up with a break in the brine system.”

The problem would not be easy to fix.

“What you'd end up having to do is shut down the ice and then you'd have to jackhammer out the floor and then you'd have to locate the leak and it would have to be repaired,” Ross explained, adding that repairing the floor alone would cost $1 million. “Typically, when those things start happening, you end up with another repair to be made somewhere else.”

That has happened time and again at the Civic, according to staff.

Exterior wall cracks were identified in a 2014 engineering report. When the walls were opened, water was found to have damaged the concrete foundations. The report identified $75,000 in repairs required to keep the building operational.

Cracks in the floor mean lacrosse is no longer played at the arena.

The Vernon Minor Hockey Association was notified Friday about conditions that may require equipment storage be moved.

“Certainly, every year that we keep the building running, more money will be required to keep it up,” said Ross.

He said estimates show it would cost $5.6 million to keep the arena operational beyond five years.

“To keep it operational beyond 10 years would be over $10 million.