After a flood inside the Bragg Creek Community Centre, the Bragg Creek Community Association (BCCA) is looking to rebuild the facility in a way that addresses all of the recreational needs of the community, according to BCCA President Mike Medwid.
“We are trying to work with all our community members to make this a great place to live, and there are certain groups who want certain things, which is good,” he said. “We are looking for constructive feedback from members to make this a more desirable meeting spot for the entire community.”
According to Medwid, the organization is using town hall meetings and community recreation surveys to assess the needs of groups who use the facility and determine where it can improve as the centre is rebuilt. The first item on the list, he said, is a new playground.
“It gets used a ton, but it was outdated,” Medwid said. “We got funding from groups like Red Cross, Scope Engineering and Brian Rogers Tree Farms, and we had some volunteers step up to help make this project possible. The whole idea of doing this as a community is to get everyone working together on things like this.”
However, some concern has been raised over the association’s plan to relocate their skating rink, which Medwid said is currently on the “sunniest spot” on the property. The plan is to move it within five years to a shadier area to hopefully get more use out of the rink – according to Medwid, the rink’s current location meant residents could enjoy less than six weeks of skating in the winter.
“We have been home to more leisure skating for the community since our hockey programs moved to Redwood Meadows,” Medwid said. “There’s only so much money available within the community, and when Redwood Meadows got a Zamboni, we decided it was more important to work together with them, instead of battling it out. If they have the ability to put in a good hockey rink, I don’t want to be competing with them.”
According to Medwid, Bragg Creek resident Terry Zimmel has been working collaboratively with the BCCA to address the need for a maintained hockey rink for the community, and Medwid said Zimmel has formed a “task force” to help with rink maintenance and clean-up to ensure the facility continues to be available in Bragg Creek.
“We’re all volunteers here, so it’s really about who steps up and wants to be a part of the community,” he said. “Since we had the flood, things have been really positive. I think it’s brought people together, and I’m so grateful to see people helping out and working with us to make this facility even better.”
– Rocky View Publishing
