A large fleet of construction equipment is on-site daily preparing the site for the construction of Prince Albert's new recreation complex. (Alison Sandstrom/paNOW Staff)

By Alison Sandstrom

Field report

Lay of the land: new rec centre site taking shape

Dec 22, 2020 | 5:00 PM

Work on the site of Prince Albert’s future $60 million recreation complex is well on track, reports the developer.

Signature Developments Co., the company that sold the 18-acre parcel to the city in June, is charged with delivering it fully-serviced and ready to build on by Oct. 31, 2021. That’s when the city plans to start construction of its aquatic and arena recreation complex.

“Things like this – a project of this size – has a lot of moving parts to it,” Rusty Clunie, one of the owners of Signature Developments Co., told paNOW. “But we’re not new to it and it’s coming together well.”

A video released in November shows an aerial view of the site. (Screenshot/Signature Developments Co.)

A fleet of around 15 to 20 earthmoving machines are on-site daily at the lot in the south-east corner of the city. Over the winter, crews will complete the rough grading and storm pond excavation. Clunie said this approach is typical in large infrastructure projects he’s worked on across Western Canada.

Final numbers

Local RM results finalized

18h ago

Commitment

Hildebrand commits to Bemidji State in NCAA DI, first NCAA commitment in Raiders history

21h ago

Inflation

Rent inflation to slow in the next few years, Desjardins predicts

22h ago

“We can make use of the winter to make grade progress and deal with the earth to a point where come springtime, we’ve got a great start on the site and drainage and stuff happening,” he said, adding some earthwork is actually easier to complete in the winter because of the lack of rain.

In the spring, installation of underground services like power, gas, and water will begin.

The City of Prince Albert plans to start construction of the aquatic and arena recreation complex in the fall, with the facility scheduled to open in the fall of 2023.

–

alison.sandstrom@jpbg.ca

On Twitter: @alisandstrom