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Community fundraisinig takes place for second ice pad
If all goes as planned, children in Leaside won't have to be turned away from ice sports after September 2012. Representatives from Leaside Memorial Gardens, the Leaside Hockey Association, the Leaside Skating Club, and the Toronto Leaside Girls Hockey Association gathered at the arena Friday morning to officially launch the fundraising campaign for the expansion project. City council had approved a $7 million loan to cover the majority of the $9.5 price tag with the community expected to raise the rest. Of the $2.5 million community portion, $1.4 million has already been raised. "This project will mean more ice time for more kids closer to home," said Paul Mercer, chairperson of the Arena Expansion Committee. Toronto, ON. February 4, 2011 - Laughter resonated through the Leaside Community at the second "Laugh out Loud in Leaside" comedy evening at the On the Park Events and Conference Centre on Friday January 28, 2011.
United in the goal of building a second ice pad in their community, Leaside residents and business owners gathered to support the fundraising campaign with a chuckle. The Laugh out Loud in Leaside Comedy Night Fundraiser was conceived and organized by Leaside resident and realtor Charlene Kalia and a few very dedicated Leaside women. "It is amazing to watch the community rally around this initiative so enthusiastically,” said Charlene Kalia. "We've overcome several major hurdles during this rink expansion initiative, none more critical than raising capital. Residents and community stakeholders are passionate about making the second ice rink a reality," she said. The fundraiser featured local residents John Oakley (AM640 Talk Radio Host) conducting the live auction and Actor/Comedian David Sparrow as the MC for the evening. Comedians from Yuk Yuk’s played to a capacity crowd. The event raised more than $40,000 which will be used to promote the building of the second ice pad. The arena expansion is a $9.5 million project of which $7 million is a recoverable loan undertaken by the city and $2.5 million is to be raised the user groups and the community. The project will come before council as part of the 2011 capital plan in February. Mayor Rob Ford expressed his support of community led initiatives such as the Laugh Out Loud in Leaside fundraiser in support of the arena expansion. The current single pad is one of the busiest in the city of Toronto. A second rink in the Leaside community would be a major step towards addressing the serious ice shortage in the City of Toronto. The Leaside Board has been working to twin this facility for the past 13 years. All proceeds will be used to help the arena board promote the building of the 2nd pad. The sold-out event included political leaders: Toronto Mayor Rob Ford, Ward 26 City Councillor John Parker, Toronto Budget Chief and Ward 39 City Councillor Mike Del Grande, MPP and Minister of Transportation Kathleen Wynne, and MP Rob Oliphant. Organisers are already more than halfway towards the $2.5 million community portion of the project costs
11 March 2011 Today the Leaside Gardens Arena Board officially launched its campaign to raise the community portion of the cost of building the second rink at Leaside Gardens. “This project will mean more ice time for more kids closer to home,” said Paul Mercer, Chair of the Arena Expansion Committee. “That’s the vision. Now we need the community to rally behind that vision and come up with the remaining funds needed to make this project a reality.” City Council recently approved the arena expansion project at an estimated cost of $9.5 million, of which $7 million will come from a city-guaranteed loan to be repaid through future operating revenues, and $2.5 million must be raised by the primary partner groups and the local community. Efforts to raise the $2.5 million have been underway for several months already Mercer said. And through a combination of one large anonymous donation, the commitments of the three partner groups, and appeals by the fundraising team to business and community leaders, $1.4 million has already been raised. Ward 26 Councillor John Parker said the shared funding model was an innovative solution in a time of budget restraint. “It’s only fair that those who will use this new rink the most bear some portion of the cost of building it,” he said. “That means not just families from Leaside but also from Riverdale, other parts of old East York, and neighbourhoods west of Bayview Avenue for whom Leaside Gardens is their closest local community rink.” Parker urged local families to make a financial contribution and to do so quickly. “We need to raise a million dollars by August 1st to keep the project on track for a fall 2012 opening” Parker said. The arena’s three primary partner associations (the Leaside Hockey Association, the Leaside Skating Club, and the Toronto Leaside Girls Hockey Association) are fully engaged in the expansion project and representatives from each group were on hand to share their vision for what the second rink will mean for the 2,500 kids currently participating in their programs. “We will be able to offer practices for our house league teams and the potential of home games at Leaside Gardens for our select and GTHL teams,” said Derek Woods, President of the LHA, “and better programming in our hockey school.” Bridget Child, President of the Leaside Skating Club, said “For us, the second rink means we’ll be able to expand our CanSkate programs offering more opportunities to kids from Leaside and Riverdale and the other local neighbourhoods to learn to skate. And it’s a chance to add summer programming as well.” Ron Baker, President of the TLGHA said, “The second rink means that we’ll no longer have to turn away girls who want to play hockey, and they won’t have to travel so far to get on the ice. That will make a real difference in the quality of the hockey experience for these girls and their families.” Expansion Committee Chair Paul Mercer said they are using all available means to raise awareness about the project and to encourage local residents to contribute. He pointed to the new billboard in the arena parking lot and said there will be other advertising in the weeks ahead. There are plans to reach every door in the catchment area served by Leaside Gardens. There is also a Facebook page and a Twitter feed which can be accessed through the website at www.LeasideArena.com. Donors can make their tax-deductible donation through the East York Foundation, which is handling donations for the project – see the website for details. In addition, people can participate in the “Give Get” program where a portion of every purchase of a tank of gas or at selected local merchants goes to the expansion project. Some additional details on donor recognition and on “Give Get” are attached. The expansion of the Leaside Gardens Arena is one step closer to reality after city council approved the project as part of its capital budget. "We're quite delighted by it," said Brooke Biscoe. "It gets us past one major hurdle in making this project happen." Biscoe is the chairperson of the Leaside Gardens Board of Management, which runs the city owned rink on Millwood Road. Plans to build the much-needed second ice pad at the Leaside Gardens have been in the works for more than a decade as user groups have struggled to find enough ice time to meet their needs. All prime-time ice (between 5 and 11 p.m. weekdays and between 6 a.m. and 11 p.m. weekends) at the 60-year-old arena is fully booked with 95 per cent of that time devoted to youth non-competitive use. "We don't have any ice left to rent," Biscoe said. Second rink at Leaside will be first new arena built by the City of Toronto in more than thirty years
28 February 2011 Toronto City Council gave its approval to the Leaside Arena Expansion Project when it passed the City’s 2011 Capital Budget this past Thursday. Plans to build the much-needed second rink at Leaside Gardens have been in the works for more than a decade. They began to accelerate in 2009 when the City purchased the land adjacent to the current arena where the second rink will be built. In 2010 a local family stepped forward with a major anonymous donation which enabled the hiring of an architect and planning work with city officials to begin in earnest. The Leaside Arena Expansion Project will cost an estimated $9.5 million, of which $7 million will come from a city-guaranteed loan to be repaid through future operating revenues, and $2.5 million must be raised by the primary partner groups and the local community. Ward 26 Councillor John Parker, who has been working towards the second rink at Leaside Gardens for the past ten years, first on the arena board and now on city council, said, “This is great news for all the kids who will be able to use the new rink in the years to come. But we’re not across the goal line yet – we need all families in Leaside and the surrounding area to step up and contribute to the community portion of the cost to make this project a reality.” “We’re thrilled to have cleared this major hurdle,” said Expansion Committee Chair Paul Mercer. “But we still have a lot of work to do. The donor family did their part to get things moving. City Council has done its part by approving the project. Now it’s up to the community to do our part and raise the $2.5 million.” Mercer added that fundraising efforts with the primary partner groups and the community have already been underway for several months. “We’re more than half way towards our goal but we have more to raise before August 1st in order to keep the project on schedule.” Anyone interested in making a donation to the project should speak with an expansion committee member or visit our donations page. It’s half past five and dawn is casting its early light along the snowbanks. Team Kypreos is transporting skaters out to at least one of three possible practices. With three children, ages 6, 10 and toe-dragging on the threshold of 12, this is a common occurrence for Nick and his wife, Anne Marie. “I personally am a huge fan of the morning practice,” says the Rogers Sportsnet Hockeycentral analyst. “Being the only one on the road at that time of day, finding a way to sneak in a coffee or bagel before practice on Bayview is a bit of a tradition for me and my kids now.” Kypreos is no stranger to the road, being a former Toronto Maple Leaf and Stanley Cup winner in 1994 with New York Rangers. Still, a penalty Kypreos would like to kill is travel time. “Our community puts, at last count, over 300,000 kilometres on driving outside of our community to get to rinks,” he said. “So first and foremost being able to play right in Leaside, GTHL games, I think would mean an awful lot to our community. “That’s pretty much our number one goal, to really embrace our community in an ongoing basis,” he added. “We don’t play games in Leaside, unfortunately, and we should.” A Message from Brooke Biscoe, Chair, Leaside Gardens Board of Management 11 January 2011 The Leaside Gardens Board of Management is pleased to announce “Laugh Out Loud in Leaside” Act Two on Friday, January 28th at 7:30 pm. All proceeds will be used to help the Arena Board promote the building of a second ice pad at Leaside Gardens. Last year this event was a great success – a fun evening of comedy, food and friends for all who attended – and tickets sold out early. This year promises to be just as enjoyable and in-demand. So, in order to accommodate more people, it has been moved to larger venue at Eglinton and Leslie – the On-the-Park Events & Conference Centre. Tickets are $75 each or a table of ten for $750. The attached flyer contains all the information you will need to purchase tickets or a table. Tickets can also be purchased online at http://leaside-arena-fundraiser-2011.eventbrite.com (fee applies). You are invited to “Laugh Out Loud in Leaside” Act Two Join us for another fun evening of Yuk Yuk’s comedy, food and friends Friday, January 28th at 7:30 pm at the On-the-Park Events & Conference Centre $75 per ticket or $750 for a table of ten All proceeds will be used to help the Arena Board promote the building of a second ice pad at Leaside Gardens. See flyer for additional information.
A Message from Brooke Biscoe,
Chair, Leaside Memorial Community Gardens Board of Management 29 November 2010 Public meeting tomorrow night This is a reminder that the LMCG Arena Board and Expansion Committee will hold a public meeting tomorrow evening, Tuesday, November 30th at 7:00 p.m. in the William Lea Room at the arena. The architects designing the project and city officials will also be in attendance. All arena users and interested members of the community are invited to hear about the latest developments on the project, to view drawings of the proposed facility, and discuss anticipated next steps on fundraising, approvals and timelines. A flyer with meeting details is attached. |
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