REGINA -- Regina mayoral candidate Jerry Flegel wants to build an aquatic centre with fitness and community rooms to service the Harbour Landing neighbourhood.
Flegel said there isn’t currently a facility big enough for the community. He said it would most likely be paid for by all three levels of government and is not meant to take away from private business.
“If we look at the southeast of Regina there’s the [Sandra Schmirler Leisure Centre], in the northwest there is the Northwest Leisure Centre and the Doug Wickenheiser Arena, those are the types of hubs that these types of communities want,” Flegel said.
“We can go to centralized, we can do all kinds of things, but at the end of the day people want community, they want this.”
No specific location has been chosen yet, as Flegel said that would be decided in consultation with developers. But he believes his skills as a salesmen would help draw developers to build on the land.
Flegel believes he could at least get the planning stage of a new centre, that would also service surrounding communities, done during a term as mayor.
The former councillor added that cities can’t rely on schools to provide recreational facilities to residents and more recreation areas are needed in Regina.
With work on the Lawson Aquatic Centre already a part of the cities recreational master plan, Flegel said proposed work at the Lawson would still go ahead.
