Council Approves Business Plan for Sherwood Community Centre and Library

At its meeting on March 21, 2016, the Town of Milton’s Committee of the Whole approved a staff report (COMS-007-16) for the business plan for the Sherwood Community Centre and Library.

The facility will be located on the north side of Main Street West, just east of Tremaine Road and adjacent to Sherwood District Park. It will house a twin pad arena, aquatic complex, multi-purpose spaces, older adult space and a branch library.

The business plan will be used by Town staff to prepare future operating budgets, and commence the architectural request for proposal and design development process. Along with the business plan, the approved staff report also authorized the solicitation of naming rights opportunities for the facility and its major components. Also, an option for an additional 3.500 square foot multi-purpose room will be further explored, which would be similar in scope to the Milton Sports Centre Banquet Room and Milton Memorial Arena Lions Club Hall.

Monteith Brown Planning Consultants, in conjunction with the JF Group, completed the business plan. The consultants incorporated information from a variety of sources, including staff interviews, industry measures and operating best practices, and comparable financial reports from other Town facilities. The consultants also included elements from previously approved documents, such as the Older Adult Strategy, Community Services and Library Master Plans, and Sherwood Community Centre & Library Component Study.

The business plan concludes that once the facility is open, the impact to the Town’s operating budget will be comparable to other Town recreation centres and Library facilities. The business plan does not include naming rights revenues, which could further reduce the annual operating impact. During the design development phase of the project from July 2016 to March 2017, the Town will consult with key stakeholder groups, the Milton Public Library Board and members of the public, including residents neighbouring the site. The facility is expected to open to the public in the spring of 2019.