Two months into his position as interim manager at Spray Lake Sawmills Family Sports Centre (SLSFSC) has made one standout clear to Adrian Sakundiak – all challenges and growth pains aside, Cochrane has a 350,000-square-foot facility second to none.
“We have an opportunity to significantly grow our membership here ... I would love to see our membership double in the next three to five years and double again five years after that,” said Sakundiak, who emphasized that the secret to success is listening – to staff, the community and the members.
“We have the privilege of operating this facility, but this is for all of us,” he said, adding that he encourages people to come and see him and provide feedback in person, as well as commenting in the book at guest services.
It’s only been a matter of weeks since the board parted ways with eight-year-long GM Robin Mitchell – a popular and well-known face at the facility.
The board has acknowledged they are in transition and are restructuring as they look to improve efficiencies and work toward their goal of eventual self-sustainability. It would appear as though the board has their work cut out for them, given the $1.2-million shortfall reported last year, largely due to first year growing pains since the facility expanded to include the Curling Centre and the Jayman BUILT Aquatic Centre, as well as staffing costs such as mandatory stat holiday pay and minimum wage hikes.
With an extensive background as a senior health executive in Saskatchewan and 15 years with his management consulting business – 20/20 Management Consulting Inc. – Sakundiak was brought in to strategize operations and leadership to help ensure the facility is a well-oiled machine.
He also has a passion for health and fitness, having spent his younger years as a major junior hockey player.
“Part of my role is to stabilize overall management, to provide day-to-day direction. Secondly, it’s optimization of operations,” he said, explaining that he takes a diagnostic assessment approach and brings a fresh, new perspective to the growing facility.
Given his background, the board’s planned operational audit has been put on hold for the time being.
SLSFSC is jointly owned by the Town of Cochrane and Rocky View County. It is operated by the SLSFSC board. The facility employs some 200 part and full-time staff, subject to seasonal shifts.
Safety & Security
Monday night council earned the SLSFSC board endorsement for their vie for a provincial Community Initiative Grant to improve safety and security at the facility. If successful, part of these funds would go toward installing more interior and exterior cameras at the facility.“One of my number one priorities is the safety and security of our staff, members and guests,” he said, adding that he would like to double their current inventory of around 30 cameras.
With the added traffic to the facility, there have been reported incidents of locker theft and vehicle break-ins. Sakundiak feels this is a byproduct of the town and facility growth and he aims to take a proactive approach.
Restaurant
Sakundiak said he is hopeful to find a solution to the empty 4,300-square-foot space above the curling centre that has been flagged as a future restaurant/lounge space.Dozens of potential vendors have been toured through the space and while the board thought they were close to securing a lease several months ago, that fell through. Obstacles including a “challenging layout” and the perceived risk by vendors to finish renovating the space, including hefty plumbing requirements, have made it difficult to rent.
“We have to take a different approach. We’re looking at how we can optimize that space and make it more desirable ... I’m hoping by spring or summer to have some good news.”
Last August, council approved $125,000 to go toward needed renovations (namely plumbing and piping) to make the space usable for the potential restaurateur. The funds were redirected from the facilities life-cycling reserve and the hope is this will help find tenants.
