CORNWALL, Ontario – City officials, including staffers and council members, have met behind closed doors with proponents of a plan to see a multi-million dollar gymnasium built at the Benson Centre in Cornwall, Seaway News has confirmed.
John Dilabio, a spokesperson for the group that wants to see the two-level gymnasium built, along with a pair of outdoor soccer fields, said in an interview the addition to the Benson Centre is not expected to be covered by municipal taxpayers.
“It wouldn’t cost the city basically anything,” he said, suggesting a fundraising campaign combined with cash from the federal government would cover most if not all of the construction cost for the gym, which could host basketball and volleyball as examples.
Dilabio suggested rental fees charged by the city to use the facility would be enough to cover operating costs.
None of this has been confirmed by city hall, and there has been no commitment from Ottawa about funding such a plan.
It was suggested to Seaway News earlier Tuesday by a source that such a facility could cost at least $2 million.
“My gut feeling is that it’s going to be much more than that,” Dilabio said.
Meetings between Dilabio’s people and city officials have not taken place in a public setting, but are instead being requested by the proponents in an unofficial capacity directly with staffers and elected officials to gauge support for the construction of such a facility.
More meetings will take place this week and will involve elected officials.
In an interview Mayor Leslie O’Shaughnessy conceded proponents of the plan met with him Friday and outlined their idea. O’Shaughnessy said he urged members of the group to bring a proposal forward to all of council.
“I’ve suggested to them they put it out to council as a whole,” he said. “It’s their plan. It’s their idea.”
Coun. Andre Rivette said council as a whole should be informed of what is going on, instead of meetings taking place piece-meal.
“I don’t know what the mayor has told them,” said Rivette, who would be supportive of a gymnasium, so long as the city isn’t handed a bill. “If they’re paying for it, I have no problem with that.”
A source close to the issue said the plan was to approach councillors before a public meeting as a courtesy, before going public with the scheme.
The gymnasium would also include soccer fields and would be built on the western part of the Benson Centre property.
There is still several hundred thousand dollars left in a city account that was created during the fundraising component of the Benson Centre construction.
Dilabio said that money could help offset the construction of the soccer field component to the Benson Centre, but that gymnasium construction would have to be covered by a completely different funding scheme.
Council could officially hear from proponents at its next regular meeting March 29.
Dilabio said at that time schematics for the addition to the Benson Centre would be made public.