History
Credit Union Place
In November of 2004, an announcement made by the City and Rural Municipality Councils gave the unanimous approval to proceed with the construction of the second phase of the Parkland Recreation Complex at a cost of $7.5 million. This project has been a dream and a mission of many community volunteers, officials and staff for a number of years and their dedication to the planning of this project became one more step closer to reality with this announcement.
The project began in March 2005 with the demolition of the old DMCC Curling Rink to make way for the construction of the new facility that has been built on that site. This facility attaches directly to the first part of the Parkland Recreation Complex that was completed in 1997 and is accessible from both the main floor and second level via a new link for the two facilities that is completely wheelchair accessible. The new facility is a multi-purpose entertainment facility that has replaced the DMCC Arena, which was built in 1951 and came to the end of its life cycle and operational ability for the community.
In April 2007, the Dauphin Recreation Services completed the first twelve months of operation and was a very successful season. The facility has already allowed our community to play host to many new major events that have now become attainable thanks to the new community facility.
Since the opening of Credit Union Place, the facility has held new major events such as the grand opening gala concert weekend on April 7 – 9, 2006 with Burton Cummings, Doc Walker, Oliver Black, Hedley & Default. That event was quickly followed by the Zirka Ukrainian Dance Ensemble Recital, Parkland Professional Summer Hockey School, Winnipeg Symphony Orchestra, 2007 Safeway Championships and the Canadian National Women’s Hockey Team pre-competition camp to conclude the first year of operation. In January – March 2008 MHSAA High School Hockey Provincials & the first out-of-Winnipeg MHSAA AAA High School Basketball provincials for which a professional basketball court was brought in from the MTS Centre in Winnipeg for the event.
Multipurpose Entertainment Facility
Project Summary: The community of Dauphin undertook the development of Phase 1 of the Parkland Recreation Complex in 1995. Phase 1 was funded primarily by the City and RM of Dauphin who collectively contributed $3,931,962. In addition, $1.2 million of capital was provided by a local fund-raising campaign. The Provincial Government contributed, through the Manitoba Sports Facilities Funding program, $250,000 and the Federal/Provincial Infrastructure program contributed $1.2 million of Provincial and Federal money.
Financing: Phase II was budgeted to cost $7.48 million (including Project Management fees and contingencies). The project was based on shared funding from the municipal, provincial and federal government totalling $7.48 million. Both the municipal and provincial governments made their funding commitments to the project. Federal Government $666,666.00, Provincial Government $1,166,666.00, City of Dauphin $3,624,402.00 and Rural Municipality of Dauphin $1,022,266.00. In addition, the Phase II Committee was mandated to raise $1 million in contributions to complete the financing for the project for individual and corporate donations. The committee believed this was a more than realistic goal based on the fact that the Phase I Committee raised $1.2 million in contributions for Phase I.
Vermillion Park Sportsplex
The Vermillion Park Sportsplex was developed to help replace and expand some of existing ball diamond facilities as well as create a new home for soccer and rugby for years to come. The first phase of the project began in 2003 and was completed in July of 2004 for the 2004 MTS Manitoba Summer Games. The first phase of the project included the construction of two new ball diamonds and three soccer pitches that are fully irrigated. There was also a new access road, parking lots and landscaping completed.
The land for the facility was purchased by the City and Rural Municipality of Dauphin and the cost of construction of the $258,000.00 construction was funded solely by a group of hard working volunteers and Recreation Services staff members that raised the funding via sponsorship, grants and community fund raising.
This facility, when completed, will have four more ball diamonds, a rugby pitch and an additional soccer area developed. It will also have a completed roadway, additional parking, a concession area, washrooms and additional landscaping. The next phase of construction that was begun in 2005 was the work on the rugby pitch and additional soccer area that are now available for use.
In 2007, some additional work on the development of the north-east rugby / soccer continued with the excavating and contouring work being completed in preparation for the work to be completed in 2008 in order to complete the construction of these facilities.
Dauphin Recreation Services also partnered with the Intermountain Conservation District to complete a riverbank stabilization project that was completed in the fall of 2007 by removing some of the eroded earth from the riverbank next to the facility irrigation pump house and installed 3 rows of A-jacks to reduce the amount of erosion that has taken place in the past in the Vermillion River.
This project was identified by both parties as an important project in order to both protect the newly constructed facility from future damage to the river bank as well as reduce the level of erosion that is occurring to the riverbank. This is making the area unstable and depositing large amounts of soil into the river, therefore, redirecting the water flow in this area of the river.
Fifth Avenue Playground
In partnership with the Dauphin Kinette Club, Dauphin Recreation Services completed the design and installation of a new play structure, picnic table and benches in the Fifth Avenue Playground. The work in this playground was the start of a proposed long term playground redevelopment plan and in recognition of the financial contribution made to the project, the playground was renamed Kinette Playground.
Vermillion Park Redevelopment
Dauphin Recreation Services met with various community organizations and the two municipal council representatives to begin the discussion in regards to the planned redevelopment process and design of Vermillion Park campground and recreational area. The process began with an overall evaluation of the campground facilities and park amenities currently in place that need to be replaced or redesigned in order to improve the overall aesthetics, efficiency and effectiveness of the entire park.
Tree Pruning Project
In 2007 the newly created tree pruning program continued with huge success and has allowed Dauphin Recreation Services to take a huge step forward in the overall plan required to improve the overall health and look of the urban forest. A very positive step in the overall efficiency of the tree program, Dauphin Recreation Services purchased a new commercial bucket truck that was funded by the City of Dauphin.
The new bucket truck has an overall reach of 60 feet as compared to the old unit that only had a 46 foot reach and is a much safer, more efficient piece of equipment to use.
The new unit also includes a dump box located on the unit for tree chips generated by the chipper to be loaded, therefore, reducing the number of trucks used to complete the tree pruning program. This reduces the amount of fuel used and emissions put into the environment due to the new efficient unit.
Skating Oval
In order to provide the community with a quality outdoor skating facility that is free to the public, Dauphin Recreation Services developed a new 300’ x 105’ skating oval on the grass show ring located on the DMCC Grounds. The venue ice was maintained with the ice resurfacer from the adjacent Rotary Arena. This venue was very well received by the public and Dauphin Recreation Services is now in the process of installing large permanent lighting around the facility to allow the users extended hours of skating pleasure for the 2008-09 winter season.
2004 MTS Manitoba Summer Games
From August 11 – 15, 2004 , Dauphin played host to what was deemed the “best Games ever”. For five days our community was alive with the spirit of sport and fair play as 1500 athletes and over 1500 volunteers, coaches and officials came to Dauphin for the Provincial Summer Games. Not only did the Games show the rest of the province what a wonderful community Dauphin is, but it showed everyone that our community knows how to put on a great event. It definitely showcased our community and our facilities.
The Summer Games not only left everyone involved with some great memories, but also had a major positive impact on our recreational facilities infrastructure leading up to and following the completion of the games. These facilities have left a lasting legacy and will allow our community to host many other major sporting events, and will benefit the active lifestyle of the community in our day-to-day recreational activities for many years to come.
Facilities that were developed or renovated due to the Games include the first phase of the new Vermillion Park Sportsplex, a new 400 meter track at the high school, 2 new ball diamonds at the high school, 2 new beach volleyball courts in Meadowlark Park, a new bulkhead for the Aquatic Center for future competitions, a storage facility for the archery club, and a first class mountain bike course at Selo Ukrainia just to name a few. The addition of much needed new equipment for many our of community programs was another benefit of the Games.
The 2004 MTS Manitoba Summer Games took a lot of planning for many years by many dedicated community-minded people and they did not disappoint. The Games showed the province our community pride, wonderful hospitality and the capability of our community to host such a great event.