After all the dedicated clicking and phoning to bring Salmon Arm to fourth in the country in the Kraft Hockeyville competition, now comes finding the bang for the buck.
Many ideas have been suggested for spending the $50,000 that Salmon Arm and supporters won for the Shaw Centre, says Dale Berger, a member of the Hockeyville committee as well as general manager for the Shuswap Recreation Society, which is primarily funded by the City of Salmon Arm.
He says ideas have been narrowed down to about 10, but citizens are still welcome to submit suggestions.
“I know one of the priorities of the committee is to recognize Hockeyville, whether through a plaque or something more than that. One idea would be to get started on some sort of wall of fame… However, at the same time, the SilverBacks are considering that themselves…,” he said.
The money could be used for one bigger project or a few smaller ones.
“Lights is one of the things on the list. It’s been a shortcoming of the facility since day one. It’s something that more than one group is interested in... The new LED technology out there could save you 75 per cent of energy use, it’s a really attractive thing.”
He notes that $50,000 could be leveraged to receive additional funds from another source.
His biggest hope is that what’s chosen can be accomplished “in one swipe, rather than one that might take a long time to complete, one where you might wonder where the funds would be to complete it.”
Berger said he expects a decision will be made regarding the $50,000 in the next two months. Once all the information has been gathered, the recreation society board will choose and then forward its recommendation to city council.
Meanwhile, if you have a suggestion of a way to spend the money, drop if off at the centre’s administration office, just inside the players’ entrance.
Sylvan Lake, Alta., Salmon Arm’s competitor in the west, was named Hockeyville winner Saturday night.