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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2026-04-14 Newcastle Memorial Arena Management Board Minutes – April 14, 2026 - 7:00 p.m. Newcastle Memorial Arena Present: Todd Taylor - Chair /Treasurer Jim Vinson - Vice Chair Josh Turner – Manager Councilor Margaret Zwart Mark Stahler Joshua Macdonald Shea-Lea Latchford – Secretary Sue White Jennifer Stycuk (Staff Liaison - MoC) Tim Welsh (Municipality of Clarington) 1. Declarations of Pecuniary Interest – There were no declarations of pecuniary interest. 2. Land Acknowledgment Statement – Todd Taylor 3. Adoption of Agenda - Motion #26-016- Moved by Sue White, seconded by Shea-Lea Latchford THAT: The agenda be amended to include a discussion on mechanical equipment by Jennifer Stycuk & Tim Welsh after agenda item #4 and be accepted. CARRIED 4. Board Member Walkdown – Building Sign Options (South Side) – Board Members did a walkdown outside on the South side of the building to review potential sign options and placement of the sign on the building. Meeting discussion agreement included locating the sign on the West side of the South wall, black lettering with no rails and an alternative white backing. Sign Supplier to be contacted for options and quotation. A quote was discussed with the Municipality for replacement of the existing brown siding to match the grey siding on the East side of the building where the change room additions were made. 5. Mechanical Equipment – Jennifer Stycuk & Tim Welsh – Four (4) paired furnaces are at end of life and need to be replaced. The replacement furnaces have air conditioning capability at additional costs than the like for like replacements. The Board was given the option to activate the A/C at the time of replacement at an estimated shared cost of 5K. The Board discussed the pros & cons of the options provided including the A/C operational costs. Motion #26-017 –After a Board Member vote, Moved by Todd Taylor, seconded by Mark Stahler that the new furnaces air conditioning be activated and the costs pertaining only to the A/C activation be shared with the Municipality and be accepted as presented. CARRIED Jennifer Stycuk shared the updated Service Level Agreement (SLA) that supports the Newcastle Memorial Arena Board’s “Terms of Reference”. The Board was advised the SLA 2 has been shared with the Orono Arena leadership team as well as it also applies to their arena. Board member Sue White provided some SLA updates to Jennifer Stycuk for clarification and revision. The Board Chair also asked that an item pertaining to Wi-Fi Connectivity be added to the SLA. A request was also made that the SLA be updated and returned to the Board for electronic distribution to all Board Members upon completion. Jennifer Stycuk also informed the Board that a letter will be forthcoming from the Municipality with timelines requesting the Newcastle Memorial Arena’s list of items to be submitted for Municipal Budget purposes. A discussion on several purposed items already submitted by NMA was discussed along with a few recently updated submissions provided by the Board Chair to Jennifer Stycuk. The Board also requested the Newcastle Memorial Arena be included in the Municipal “Energy” evaluation program where facility utility costs are monitored for usage, opportunities for improvement and cost savings. 6. Adoption of Minutes – Motion #26-018 – Moved by Jim Vinson, seconded by Mark Stahler THAT: The minutes of March 10, 2026, be accepted as presented. CARRIED 7. Manager’s Report (copy attached) Highlights discussed include 1. March 7, 2026 – Power Outage 7:30 AM – 9 AM. All procedures followed, no lost ice time. 2. Accessible buttons were fixed at the front door and dressing room hallway door. 3. Furnaces were repaired March 16, 2026, but it was identified that the furnaces need to be replaced this summer. Municipal HVAC technician advised that the furnaces are not likely to last another season and recommended replacement. 4. A new rink board add is to be posted to support the Municipality’s residential CO2 Monitor initiative. 5. Telk assessed the NMA sound system due to recent microphone volume issues. User tips were provided and testing was successful. 6. Catchcorner Meeting was held March 25, 2026, to discuss decreasing bookings and revenue. Website traffic down due to removal from Oshawa platform. Actions were discussed to improve bookings. Also, added spring/summer schedule and pricing to support improvements. 7. March 31, 2026, the Municipality did the defibrillator testing. 9. Two new ORFA guidelines were determined applicable to the Newcastle Memorial Arena and reviews are in progress for lessons learned and actions as needed. 10. Ice removal preparations were in progress in early April, and the ice removal process was started on April 7, 2026, the ice is now out. 8. Financial Report – Todd provided a copy of budget vs. actuals thus far for 2026. The Vianet contract for Fiber installation was signed, 12K one-time payment to follow. Catch Corner revenues were presented to the Board for updating. Elexicon billing analysis for February was presented to the Board given the ice temperature adjustments made in February. Some savings were realized in the analysis. Farmer’s Market 2026 permit is not in place yet. Communication has been positive with the FM representatives and a permit is expected to be forthcoming. 9. Risk Management Risk walkarounds took place April 9 with Josh Turner and Joshua MacDonald. DR#1 shower holder, visitor bench rubber and outside light identified for repairs. 3 10. Business Arising from Previous Minutes a. External Signage – Josh Turner reported that the East signage above the front entrance will be done when the block wall is painted. Josh is making arrangements to have this done. Board discussions took place today on the South sign. See Agenda Item #4. b. Connectivity Improvements – Mark Stahler reported that the Municipal Fiber provider was experiencing delays, so the Option#2 recommendation was taken to sign a 3-yr agreement with Vianet to provide the Fiber. The next steps include walkdowns for fibre runs and an equipment list (rack & switching units) from the Municipality to support the initiative. The cost of the equipment is still to be determined. Jennifer Stycuk advised the Municipality cannot support these costs. The LiveBarn contract was also signed for video streaming and a kick off meeting is scheduled April 22, 2025. Mark reported that he will follow-up on options related to electronic storage of procedures and documents for the Arena Manager. c. Todd Taylor reported that no new procedures were completed this month. The “Workplace Staff Accident/Incident Report Form” was established separate from the “Staff Accident/Incident Reporting Policy” for ease of use by the Arena Manager and Board. The Arena Manager is also finalizing his notes for a document relative to the Ice Removal Process. d. Board Member Vacancy – There are currently no applicants to the vacancy yet. 11. New Business There was no new business to be discussed at this time. 12. The Chair adjourned the meeting at 9:00 P.M. Next Board Meeting, Tuesday, May 12, 2026 7:00 p.m. – Newcastle Memorial Arena