'Game changer': $1.5M all-weather sports fields coming to North Saanich
The dream of having "all-weather" sports fields on the Saanich Peninsula is one step closer to being realized.
Work is set to begin on an estimated $1.5 million project that will see two new turf soccer fields at North Saanich’s Blue Heron Park.
The Peninsula Soccer Association has been working to replace the current grass fields for more than 15 years.
The new turf fields will mean that the more than 900 members of the soccer association will no longer face cancelled practices or game times due to poor field conditions at the facility.
"It's a game changer for the Peninsula [club] because we haven’t had [an all-weather field] before, and now we will," said Peninsula Soccer Association acting president Dale West.
"It means you can play year-round, it means you can have programming that you don’t have to go elsewhere for," he said.
The soccer association has raised more than $600,000 towards the project and has received financial contributions from the Districts of North Saanich, Central Saanich and the Town of Sidney to complete the installation of the all-weather fields.
West says he expects the work on the turf fields to be completed in time for the start of the soccer season in September 2023.
He says the new fields will bring new opportunities for soccer programs and players from up and down the Saanich Peninsula.
"It's for the kids [and] it's going to give those kids an opportunity that the ones before them haven’t had," said West.
"It’s going to mean that anybody can play 24/7, 365 days of the year and going forward everyone in the community will have access to [the facility] and we’re excited that it is happening."
West says the group is continuing its fundraising efforts for other improvements to the facility. He says the association will need to purchase new soccer goals and nets in addition to new player benches.
"We’re definitely doing a lot more fundraising for the additional infrastructure, like the fencing and the benches," he said.
"We’ve got sponsorship packages that we are going to be sending out and we’re hoping for some provincial grant money."
For more information or to donate go to the Peninsula Soccer Association website.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Doctors ask Liberal government to reconsider capital gains tax change
The Canadian Medical Association is asking the federal government to reconsider its proposed changes to capital gains taxation, arguing it will affect doctors' retirement savings.
Keeping these exotic pets is 'cruel' and 'dangerous,' Canadian animal advocates say
Canadian pet owners are finding companionship beyond dogs and cats. Tigers, alligators, scorpions and tarantulas are among some of the exotic pets they are keeping in private homes, which pose risks to public safety and animal welfare, advocates say.
Prince William and wife Kate thank public for birthday messages for son Louis
Prince William and his wife Kate thanked the public for their messages which had been sent to mark the sixth birthday of their youngest son Louis on Tuesday.
She was the closest she'd ever been to meeting her biological father. Then life dealt her a blow
Anne Marie Cavner was the closest she'd ever been to meeting her biological father, but then life dealt her a blow. From an unexpected loss to a host of new relationships, a DNA test changed her life, and she doesn't regret a thing.
How quietly promised law changes in the 2024 federal budget could impact your day-to-day life
The 2024 federal budget released last week includes numerous big spending promises that have garnered headlines. But, tucked into the 416-page document are also series of smaller items, such as promising to amend the law regarding infant formula and to force banks to label government rebates, that you may have missed.
Which foods have the most plastics? You may be surprised
'How much plastic will you have for dinner, sir? And you, ma'am?' While that may seem like a line from a satirical skit on Saturday Night Live, research is showing it's much too close to reality.
'Catch-and-kill' strategy to be a focus as testimony resumes in Trump hush money case
A veteran tabloid publisher was expected to return to the witness stand Tuesday in Donald Trump's historic hush money trial.
Quebec farmers have been protesting since December. Is anyone listening?
Upset about high interest rates, growing paperwork and heavy regulatory burdens, protesting farmers have become a familiar sight across Quebec since December.
South Korean sentenced to 14 months in jail for killing 76 cats
South Korean man has been sentenced to 14 months in prison for killing 76 cats in one of the country's most gruesome cases of animal cruelty in recent years.