Saying goodbye to the Jubilee Arena may be easier said than done as a hazardous material discovered within the structure has postponed its spring date with the wrecking ball.
A preliminary report conducted by the town a month ago showed traces of asbestos in the facility. Asbestos is a carcinogenic substance that was used as insulation within the cinder blocks when the arena was built in 1963.
Mayor Bruce Lennon said that the discovery puts a twist on the demolition that may end up costing the municipality more than the $200,000 that was originally budgeted.
“If the costs are huge in terms of demolition we may be looking at a different issue,” he said.
The contractor, O’Brien Industries, also expressed concern about going through with the demolition following the discovery of asbestos.
“We are in now in the process of retaining another company that is going to do an analysis for us. Once we get that report we’ll have a better idea of the costs dealing with the asbestos problem,” Lennon said.
The hazardous material assessment will take anywhere from two weeks to a month before the municipality will know how much it will cost them to tear down the facility.
“The assessment will be our means to go forward in terms of seeing if we could possibly tender out the hazardous material abatement for the building,” said town manager Darrell Garceau.
Even if the assessment shows there is less than one per cent of asbestos in the building, it is enough to raise concerns.
“Asbestos is a dangerous material. The materials when inhaled into your lungs sort of stays there and your immune system can’t fight it. You would not know about it until 30 years down the line,” said radiation oncologist Dr. Terry Nijjar.
Alberta has strict codes and guidelines that must be followed in taking down the building, Nijjar said.
To tear down the building, a company would need to dispose of the materials in a specialized landfill in sealed containers with workers fully suited to ensure they are not exposed to the asbestos in the air.
While the structure remains standing however, it does not pose a threat to the community since the asbestos is trapped within the walls and is not airborne.
“As it sits now it’s not hazardous. There’s a number of different things we can use it for like cold storage. Structurally the building is fine,” Lennon said.
Keeping the building is another option that the town is considering if the costs for demolition become too high.
“We can very simply or very easily make use of the building as a warehouse. We wouldn’t have to necessarily run the arena,” said Garceau.
With the analysis report set to take a few more weeks the arena is still available to the community to use as well, said Garceau. Keeping it open will allow the lacrosse teams to have a few more home games this season.
“Lacrosse at present is scheduled to use the facility throughout the month of April and now given this exercise they can use the facility through the month of May as well,” he said.
Discussions about the ultimate fate of the Jubilee Arena will be raised at the April 23 town council meeting at which time the report and budget issues will be presented.
Until then, Lennon says the arena will remain standing.
“I suppose it’s not the end of the world if it stays there for another year,” he said.
