The Cornwall Curling Centre celebrated another milestone in its long history – fulfilling its commitment to pay off a sizable mortgage in record time.
The curling centre forked over a cheque for $48,000 Monday to pay off the balance of a $450,000 loan it had taken out eight years ago to pay for a new facility that was built adjacent to the Cornwall Civic Complex.
The facility, worth approximately $2.3million, was funded through government grants and cash raised by curling centre members.
John Dilabio, a past president of the curling centre, said paying off the 15-year mortgage in about half the time is a testament to the “frugal management” of the facility.
Kevin Baker, another past president, said members of the centre are extremely pleased.
“It’s a real sense of elation,” said Baker. “We always wanted to be able to say we kept our promise to the city.”
The $2.3-million curling centre was built in 2003. At the time curling centre members and corporate sponsors had raised about $775,000 for a new home. A senior government grant program brought in an additional $800,000, while another $250,000 came from the sale of the former Cornwall Curling Club ($50,000) on Marlborough Street, as well as a previous mortgage ($200,000).
Finally, city council agreed to guarantee a loan from the Royal Bank of Canada for $450,000 to pay off the balance.
The city actually owns the facility, but it is run by the curling centre members and their executive.
Baker and Dilabio said now that some month-to-month costs have been freed up, there could be some expansion of the existing facility in the future.
“We could always use some expansion of the locker room facilities,” said Baker, adding expansion of the dining/lounge area is being considered as well.
