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Tuesday, April 24, 2012

Sports Fans Tussle Over Rec Facilities

Sports fans duking it out at Common Council. Amid debate over a pricey project to make the LBR an Olympic-sized ice surface, dozens of coaches and parents showed up to protest proposed user fee hikes for sports fields.

Councillor Patty Higgins expressed confusion about renovating the rink, then jacking up fees for sports fields. Her reasoning is that rinks are seasonal, expensive to maintain, and used by fewer people, whereas fields are cheap and popular.

Councillor Gary Sullivan and others disagreed, saying an Olympic-sized rink would help make Saint John a destination for tournaments and other major sports events.

Mayor and council widely agreed raising fees would make it harder for kids to play but revenue isn't going to come out of nowhere. The matter was tabled until council's next meeting on May 7th.