WELLINGTON NORTH – The Township of Wellington North is looking to explore the potential future use of a former recreation centre in Mount Forest.
Council approved a phased work plan and the general timelines associated with work needed on the Mount Forest Community Centre at 320 King St. E.
It had been under a lease agreement with the Mount Forest Victory Church from August 2009 until Jan. 1 of this year but prior to this a report said the township had conducted a preliminary review of the facility.
The report recommended a phased approach with the first step to ensure the safety and security of the facility by doing some structural repairs, enhancing the security system, installing new lighting, upgrading the fire suppression system and more.
The 2024 budget included $75,000 in the capital budget for the community centre and $16,900 for new day camp tables and chairs stored there which the report said should be sufficient for the first two phases.
Phase two is suggested to take on council and community consultation to find out what potential future uses this building might have.
“We’ve received inquiries, so we know that there’s interest as well but I don’t want to speculate what that would be,” said Brooke Lambert, CAO, adding pickleball is a fairly popular program at the community centre.
Victory Church will continue to rent the building on Sunday morning and Thursday evenings but Lambert said other rentals will be limited over 2025.
Coun. Lisa Hern said she felt this space provided a great opportunity and suggested a new name might be in order to avoid confusion with the Mount Forest Sports Complex.
“I googled it and I kept getting the sports complex, so it became very confusing,” Hern said. “I’m thinking that at least exploring a really distinct, cool name might be a lot more clear for a lot of people and a real opportunity to rebrand this facility.”
The report said following phase two, the third phase will consider the operating and capital budget required for the project at the end of 2025 with the architectural and renovation work expected over 2026 and into 2027.
