Twin-Pad Arena and Library Project

It is paramount to build this arena at 544 Mains Street, close to a downtown hub, which hopefully will follow. The library should be located at either Stonebridge or Main Street and Glenwood. You must stop spreading this town out into "nodes." I realize we have a linear waterfront, as do countless other fortunate cities and towns throughout the world and yet, a main area was the starting point and cities and towns grew out from there. For example Miami Beach, For Lauderdale, Sydney, Australia, Collingwood. The recent On The Bay Magazine refers to Wasaga's plan of nodes as "Novel", I believe that's a polite way of saying asinine. Anyone would give their "eye teeth" to have such a waterfront, and yet ours filled with paved parking lots.

The twin pad arena in my opinion should be at 544 River Rd W. Many hockey teams travel from the 400 hwy and this location offers easy access to accommodation and restaurants. It has a better chance of attracting a brand name hotel due to the fact that there would be more than a summer tourist season here. Especially if events were added. Who would want to put a 20-30 million dollar arena out in an isolated area like Klondike with no amenities or bus route?? That would be a shame. Regarding the library it makes sense to me to locate it at Stonebridge where outside activities can be planned for kids with the trails and the gazebo right outside and with all the amenities close by it will offer the Community hub feel that this council cancelled on Main St.

Main Street Location and Glenwood fro Library
- By far the cheapest option
- Let's stop buying even more land/ buildings and develop our town owned land
-Collingwood and every other successful town has a downtown with Library and Arena near each other - I want to drive to one location not drive around Wasaga Beach wasting gas
- Can show off our new building - great accessibility to transit and main street and Stonebridge - Beach 1 is Wasaga Beach's image - so until that is fixed everyone will still see Wasaga as a run down town!
- It just makes common sense

I would like to see the new library at the 45th and Robinson location. Of all of the options this seems to be the most central for residents. This site also offers an excellent location on a main thoroughfare which would provide great visibility for the library. With schools, shopping and a medical centre nearby residents would find this location convenient as well. This site also offers opportunities for future expansion if required.

Would love to see the library at the Main / Glenwood location .....a good draw for people especially if lots of activities are ongoing & hopefully an art gallery component within. It will be a good central locale for locals & visitors to enjoy. Would put the arena at the Sports Park as a stand alone facility especially with lots of room for expansion and the property is already town owned. My 2nd choice for the library site would be 45th / Robinson Rd but it is a more expensive option...but....does allow a ''walk to '' factor that is huge especially with it's proximity to the RecPlex and schools for interactive use.

The new Wasaga Beach Public Library site should be at 45th Street. There are three reasons why the library should be at 45th street, which are the proximity to amenities, the room for expansion and the proximity to schools

The majority of the current Wasaga Beach Public Library patron base is retirees and as such the proximity to amenities is important. Being close to the Supercenter will attract the patrons who are already out shopping. Similarly, The South Georgian Bay Health Centre serves the same demographic as the library so those going to the health centre would also visit the library in the same trip. Many people do not like going out multiple times a day so having the library situated inside a hub of amenities allows for more draw since people don’t have to go out of their way. As a library employee I have called patrons for books that are ready to pick up only to have them respond that they already went out that day so they can’t come get the book. Having the library at 45th street, this problem would not happen as those patrons would already have dropped in to the library on their time out and gotten their books then.

Not only are there physical amenities like the superstore and the health centre near by, there are also transit amenities on 45th street. Since the Superstore is the transit hub of Wasaga beach it is beneficial for the library to be close by. Instead of waiting for the bus inside the Superstore, there would be a quiet, warm, library to wait inside. Similarly, since the library is such a community driven establishment being on the link bus line connects us not just to our community in Wasaga Beach but our larger community of Simcoe County. Many new faces in the library I see are in the library because they are going on a car trip or traveling a long distance. Now that the Linx bus to Barrie is in, by putting the Library at 45th street we can even more of those new faces in the door who are leaving on their trips from the superstore.

In a rapidly increasing population centre like Wasaga Beach having the room for future expansion is imperative. The current location of the library was built in 1994 and in only 25 years it has become grossly undersized for this community. If we were to build the new library on a site that could not be expanded upon, I realistically see this same space problem that we have now happening again in another 25 years. The size of the lot on the 45th site would allow for expansion instead of relocation. In conjunction with expanding because of population growth there is also the needs of the community to think about. If you look at a library like the Idealab in Innisfil most of that building is designed for technology and is capable of expanding inside as well when new technologies are created. Wasaga Beach Public Library can be that same leader of innovation in our community.

While I was doing my second placement for Library and Information Technician school I was fortunate enough to work at the Collingwood Public Library in their teen department. While there they had just moved their teen section from the first floor to the second floor to become more visible to the teens that attended the library. During my time there I was amazed at the amount of use that the library got from young people. Not necessarily attending programs or interacting with the collection at all the Collingwood library acted as a meeting place for some, a study space and a place to decompress and play some video games for an hour. I would love to see this happen to the Wasaga Beach Public Library as well. Worsley Elementary and St. Noel’s are two great reasons to have the library at 45th street. By having the library situated so close to these schools we can become the same type of youth hub that Collingwood is for Wasaga Beach. We could hold after school programs, homework help, and even just offer up our space to them for whatever they feel they need to do.

Another opportunity that being close to the two schools is that outreach can become a more viable option for children’s and youth programmers at Wasaga Beach Public Library. As I’ve said previously the real goal of the library is to become a community hub and to be a community hub we have to be part of the community. Having the library at 45th street allows programmers to go to the schools and be visible not just at events and barbecues but in the classes, in the school libraries working with school librarians to create a cohesive library community. Imagine having a child looking for a book that the Wasaga Beach Public Library doesn’t have but since there is a partnership with the local schools, we would know that the book they were looking for was at Worsley or St. Noel’s library and guide that patron there knowing that the school libraries would do the same for us.

45th street is the perfect location for Wasaga Beach’s new library as there and it will become a community hub. It will serve the community by being close to amenities so that the patrons can hit all their needs in one place and in a short amount of time. 45th street also allows room for expansion in terms of size but also technological expansion when technology grows and develops. And finally, the 45th street location is close to Worsley and St. Noel’s schools which will support working closely with them in terms of outreach and supporting their education.

I feel that the site at 544 River Road is the most suitable for both a twin pad arena and a library. A walking area for seniors needs to be incuded.

I prefer the Twin pad and Library to be together to allow families to be able to use both at once, the rink for one child and the library for another without leaving the rink. There could be an addition of a track perhaps and a pool, or a new Y as we will be outgrowing our present one. Room to grow to become more like other town's new rink combinations. A community hub. I really like the economy of having the 2 buildings together sharing costs for running and upkeeping the buildings. Building together also has cost savings. It will also serve as a welcoming sight for people entering town on 92.

The 45th St/Robinson Rd is a great area for the library, close to the RecPlex. Other communities we have lived in have always had the library in or near their Recreation Complex. The arena should definitely be near the downtown/east end to promote tourism and help the businesses in that area. The library does not need to be in the tourist district but rather residential community area.

I feel 45th St/Robinson Rd - Library Stand Alone, is the perfect location. for our New library, Love this area .

Build this Arena for the future, Local High school team.
A gym, elevated Running track around the Ice Surface. More than adequate seating, Conference Center. Pro Shop, and other Store fronts.
Medical area
Rink Size - Olympic and NHL
Large Dressing Rooms
Large shower Stalls
Gear storage area for teams during tournaments.
Gear cleaning capabilities
Upstairs Bar and eatery Cafe.
View of both rinks from upstairs

I think it is important to build the twinpad arena close to the downtown area on the 544 River Road location as it will contribute to the downtown/community hub . When we host hockey tournaments or skating competitions, people will be more likely to use local restaurants and shopping stores compared to the sportsplex location. Traffic shouldn't be a concern as this area is pretty quiet in the winter months. The planned hotel at the corner of Main and River Road will do more business in the off season with their proximity to the arena.

I have chosen the arena and library being on River Rd both together. Although the cost of property prep is the highest of all the choices that is somewhat of a miss leading number. Take the cost of prep of the property at the sportspark for the arena and 45th for the library the difference becomes much less. Then the savings inbuilding both in one location and the savings of yearly upkeep and utilities makes the River Rd site much more financially attractive.
I also believe this site would with the arena and library would become a hub for growth in our town. Something we need so badly.

While I understand the desire to have everything centrally located, given the layout of Town this, is of course, impossible. I don’t see a library as a gathering place for out-of-towners or necessary as a hub for tourist information. I think this could be accomplished in the Entertainment District/Main Beach Area by building an info hut/coffee shop in the fashion of Pier 6 on Queen’s Quay in Toronto. Provide a seating area outdoors and washrooms and it would be a very welcoming and, I think, well used thing. It could easily become the “I’ll meet you at the Welcome Booth” for residents and for out-of-towners. I think the Library, as a year round asset primarily for residents, should be stand alone and located at 45th St. S. Let’s share the wealth and have yet another reason to bring people to the west end; surely it can only benefit every store and business passed on the way :)

The Twin Pad Arena should be a standalone at the Sports Park. The site is more than capable of handling the infrastructure and could be expanded as needed. Hopefully consideration can still be given to creating a more multi use facility. The Rec plex outgrew itself right from the time of design and building completion. (I.e. Gymnasium, weight room, community rooms, additional day care facility, etc.) Thought should be given to this aspect otherwise we end up with another Recplex that is far to small to accommodate the ever growing needs of the community. In addition the cost to purchase and prep the land is very high at 544 River Road West. Traffic congestion is always an issue in this end of Town during the summer which therefore can limit and discourage residents from going down to this location during the summer months. The Sports Park provides opportunities for different points of access for the entire Town and visitors. As for the Library this is a facility like in all other municipalities that should be focusing on community first and foremost, this is who it is intended to serve primarily. Having this valuable resource located in an area that does not provide an easy way in or out would once again leave this facility potentially under utilized or avoided at certain times. The location once again should have the ability to be accessed easily by residents, this doesn't necessarily mean by foot or by bicycle. In all likely hood both locations will be attended primarily by residents and visitors in a vehicle, or public transit as this service grows the structure and layout of the Town dictates this. Access by all modes of transport should be weighted heavily when deciding on the location of these two facilities, not just were a hotel will potentially be placed or to support tourism as a primary. The Town of Wasaga Beach is much more than just a Tourist destination, it has become a large and ever-growing community that will continue to have community needs and demands!

The Municipality has been investing in street improvements with bike lanes. I expect this
will continue into the future. This allows for seniors and youth to utilize bike paths not just for
transportation but for physical activity/recreation. A twinpad/library site or standalone sites
within the Main Street area would allow for bicycle access. Not in favour of the Klondike Park
Sports Park area... makes wintertime access for both youth and seniors difficult.

I believe the library needs to be standalone, central to the Main Street area, where it can act as a source of cultural activity, gathering place and tourist info booth. A street level small cafe and outdoor mini "square" would offer a community feel and attractive to visitors to the town.

The arena must be at 544 River Road to attract potential hotel developers, for hockey tournaments, events where the ice is taken out, and close to the main street businesses and Beach One. Veteran's Way would be a complete waste of opportunity for the Town to develop.

Although more expensive up front I feel the combination Twin Pad & Library will be more efficient for the town to look after in the future. The west end has the RecPlex as well as the coming casino. The east end needs a community hub as well. The subsidized housing on Zoo Park Rd will be close by. These residents will need the services of the library even more than most home owners in town. The new hotel will be close by for tournaments at the arena as well

Option C for the twin pad makes more sense to me definitely a place that is getting lots more use As long as it doesn’t affect our Atv club site I’m fine with it being there And for the library 45th street at the west end is a good idea as it will get a lot more traffic also a good area for adding on to

LOVE the idea of a library at 45th/Robinson. Recommend that an independent coffee shop/bakery be attached. Almost makes up for losing our bank at the west end ;) As for the arena, the SportsPark would be my choice. Take a look at how Base Borden designed theirs - when one of the pads is used less frequently they repurpose that sheltered space for summer camp use. To me, grouping sports-oriented facilities together makes the most sense.