WESTLOCK - Town of Westlock officials say it may take years, not months, before usage numbers rebound at the Rotary Spirit Centre.
Town of Westlock community services director Gerry Murphy told councillors at their Oct. 13 meeting that they think it may take until 2022 before numbers even begin to approach past totals. RSC membership usage and paid drop-ins for the weight room and fieldhouse for the past two months are currently trending at about half versus 2018 and 2019.
August 2020 saw around 1,000 users compared to 2,000-plus in 2018 and 2019, while September 2020 saw just over 1,000 users versus 2,500-plus in 2018 and just under 2,500 in 2019.
Five-hundred-and-ninety-seven town residents used the RSC in September, while 300 county residents walked through its doors. Meanwhile, 100 people from municipalities outside the area used the facility and there were five users from the Village of Clyde.
“We’re trending in the right direction, but we’re nowhere close to 2019 numbers. And we don’t anticipate to be close to 2019 numbers until 2022,” said Kelly. “We expect the effects of COVID will continue through the beginning of 2021 … at least for the first quarter.”
While RSC usage numbers for January and February 2018-2020 are comparable, the number dropped in half in March as all rec facilities in Alberta were shuttered due to the pandemic — there were no users allowed in the RSC from April to June.
Following the reopening, usage rebounded to 1,000-plus in July when patrons could book time slots to use the weight room or fieldhouse.
Since the ice went in Sept. 11, hockey and ringette have resumed, albeit with slightly smaller numbers, while figure skating and adult ice users have started using the rink. At the fieldhouse, fitness classes and adult volleyball have resumed, while pickleball, which used to occupy the fieldhouse, has been played on the outdoor tennis courts south east of the facility.
“Besides being able to be open, it’s another thing, as you say, for people to be able to find a level of comfort that they’re going to need to go back to it. Some will and some won’t,” said mayor Ralph Leriger.
“It could be a 2022 … there’s an issue of people being comfortable. It’s more than just regulations and there’s a financial element also for some people,” added Coun. Murtaza Jamaly.
CAO Simone Wiley noted that despite the facility being open for the same number of hours daily, due to additional cleaning, social distancing and other COVID-19 protocols, there’s less productive time.
The capacity for spectators at the RSC remains at 100, while Murphy said in his report that they’re discouraging cheering and yelling as it presents a high risk of spreading droplets, which could pass the virus.
“So there’s less ice time available for example because you have space (time) in between that you never had before,” Wiley noted.
