New $132-million aquatic and recreation centre in Port Coquitlam opening this year

Artistic rendering of the new Community Recreation Complex in Port Coquitlam. (Architecture 49)

For a municipality the size of Port Coquitlam, a city with less than 60,000 people, this new civic amenity project represents a huge undertaking.

The first portions of the Community Recreation Complex at 2150 Wilson Avenue, just south of Wilson Avenue between Mary Hill Road and Kingsway Avenue, is slated to open in separate phases later this year beginning in the summer.

The $132-million project spans 205,000 sq. ft. of floor area and includes a leisure pool and a three-lane, 20-metre length swimming area, three ice rinks including a spectator rink with 800 seats, fitness gym, gymnasium, sports medicine office, games room and lounge for youth and seniors, multi-purpose activity rooms, and a new Terry Fox Library.

Port Coquitlam Community Recreation Complex

Layout of the new Community Recreation Complex in Port Coquitlam. (Architecture 49)

Outside the building, there will also be a public plaza with seating, sports courts, amphitheatre, and spray park.

A total of 500 vehicle parking stalls are located underground.

Artistic rendering of the new Community Recreation Complex in Port Coquitlam. (Architecture 49)

A majority of the indoor amenities will open this year; the first two ice rinks and library will open late summer or early fall, and areas such as the aquatic centre, fitness centre, and multipurpose and game rooms will open by the end of the year. Remaining indoor and outdoor amenities will be completed in the second half of 2021.

Very excited to get a tour of the construction progress of our new @CityofPoCo Community Centre. It’s already an incredibly impressive building that will help us meet the needs of our growing community! pic.twitter.com/sAcBYzftFj

— Brad West (@BradWestPoCo) March 6, 2019

In order to realize the project, the municipal government tapped various funding sources, including $12.5 million from the federal government, $41.2 million from internal and reserve funds, and $52 million borrowed over a 30-year term.

Remaining funding is generated by a $25 per property parcel tax from 2017 to 2020, $7.3 million in facility levies from 2015 to 2019, and a $17-million sale of city-owned lands — including the former public works yard — for residential and commercial development.

Construction on the project began in 2017. The project is designed by Architecture 49 and built by Ventana.

Last year, the City of North Vancouver, another small municipality, also approved a large aquatic and recreational centre project — a $237 million facility with a design far more ambitious than Port Coquitlam’s new community hub.

Artistic rendering of the new Community Recreation Complex in Port Coquitlam. (Architecture 49)

New $132-million aquatic and recreation centre in Port Coquitlam opening this year

See also

See also