Province invests in new sports complex at Canadore College
The province is investing funds to cover a portion of the cost of building a multi-use sports and recreation facility at Canadore College’s Commerce Court campus.
Nipissing MPP Vic Fedeli announced Friday morning that through the Northern Ontario Heritage Fund Corporation, $2 million is being set aside to help build the $9 million sports complex.
“We will continue to foster a strong future in our region by supporting economic growth and reaffirming the North as a great place to call home,” Fedeli said.
Canadore College’s multi-use sports complex will include an 85,000-square-foot dome and a 6,200-square-foot clubhouse.
The new facility will act as the only full-service sports centre in the north and will support year-round soccer, golf, baseball, basketball, tennis, volleyball, dry land training, cricket, badminton and sports conditioning. It will also become a hub for the community and help the school expand its varsity and recreational sports programming – with the space having the potential to host large community events, tradeshows and conferences.
“The facility will feature artificial turf, a hard court, and many other features to support maximum usability by the college and the community,” said George Burton, the college’s president and CEO.
“We are grateful to the Government of Ontario and the Northern Ontario Heritage Fund for its support of this important project.”
After the news conference, Fedeli swapped from suit and tie to a hard hat and vest and climbed in the excavator to scoop out the first chunk of dirt.
- Download the CTV News app now and get local alerts on your device
- Get local breaking news and updates sent to your email inbox
Announced last June, the facility has faced delays due to issues in the supply chain, the increased cost of interest rates as well as the need to complete the project’s environmental assessment.
“Just coming out of the pandemic, now we’re just getting things back up to speed,” said Burton.
“Now we can go with shovels in the ground and we don’t have to pause again.”
Canadore College currently has anywhere between 200-250 athletes who represent the school at the varsity level and recreation level.
“Athletics and recreation is really at the core of everything we do here at the college,” said Ryan Drouin, the school’s manager of sport and wellness.
“It’s really going to enhance our programming. Both our men’s and women’s volleyball team are really on the rise in the OCAA too. So having this facility really goes a long way to help us compete at a higher level.”
College officials said they expect the facility will be open sometime between next spring and early fall.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories

'Shadows of children': For the youngest hostages, life moves forward in whispers
After seven weeks held hostage in the tunnels of Gaza, they are finally free to laugh and chat and play. But some of the children who have come back from captivity are still reluctant to raise their voices above a whisper.
Extremely rare white alligator is born at a Florida reptile park
An extremely rare white leucistic alligator has been born at a Florida reptile park. The 19.2-inch (49 cm) female slithered out of its shell and into the history books as one of a few known leucistic alligators, Gatorland Orlando said Thursday.
Minnesota grocery store clerk dies after customer impales him with a golf club, police say
A Minneapolis store clerk died after a customer beat him and impaled him with a golf club, police said. The 66-year-old clerk was attacked Friday at the Oak Grove Grocery, a small neighborhood store in a residential area near downtown Minneapolis. A 44-year-old suspect is jailed on suspicion of murder.
A Soviet-era statue of a Red Army commander taken down in Kyiv
City workers in Kyiv on Saturday dismantled an equestrian statue of a Red Army commander, the latest Soviet monument to be removed in the Ukrainian capital since Russia launched its full-scale invasion last year.
Ibrahim Ali found guilty of killing 13-year-old girl in B.C.
A jury has found Ibrahim Ali guilty of killing a 13-year-old girl whose body was found in a Burnaby, B.C., park in 2017.
Protests at UN climate talks, from ceasefire calls to detainees, see 'shocking level of censorship'
Activists designated Saturday a day of protest at the COP28 summit in Dubai. But the rules of the game in the tightly controlled United Arab Emirates meant sharp restrictions on what demonstrators could say, where they could walk and what their signs could portray.
Bill 15: Quebec health reform passes after gov't invokes closure
After sitting through the night, early Saturday morning, members of the Quebec legislature finally passed Bill 15 to reform the health-care network, voting 75 to 27.
Marathon Conservative carbon tax filibuster ends after nearly 30 consecutive hours of House votes
The Conservative-prompted filibuster in the House of Commons ended Friday night, after MPs spent nearly 30 hours voting non-stop on the government's spending plans.
New U.S. aid for Ukraine by year-end seems increasingly out of reach as GOP ties it to border security
A deal to provide further U.S. assistance to Ukraine by year-end appears to be increasingly out of reach for President Joe Biden. The impasse is deepening in Congress despite dire warnings from the White House about the consequences of inaction as Republicans insist on pairing the aid with changes to America's immigration and border policies.