Nothing but Net, as City puts newly renovated Civic Centre floor on display

Some youngsters in Prince Rupert had the chance to check out the
new floor on Tuesday, as the city celebrated the official opening of the
newly refurbished Gym Floor
(photo from Prince Rupert Port Authority)

It was a three point play of funding for the City of Prince Rupert, as the City celebrated the official opening of the refurbished gymnasium floor in the Russell Gamble Gym and the Jim Ciccone Civic Centre.

As a number of officials took to the court for the official photo op and what became a one shot game of horse, the role of the Civic Centre complex as a vital part of the City's social and athletic scene became the centre piece to the announcement.

The 74,000 dollar project was completed over the summer with funding provided by the City of Prince Rupert, Northern Development Trust and the City of Prince Rupert. From that total the Port contributed 28,000 dollars, NDIT 15,000 dollars with the City making up the remainder.

Mayor Lee Brain made note of the assistance of the city's partners on the project and the wide amount of use that the facility receives.

“The City is grateful to our partners for helping us to renew one of the most used recreation spaces in Prince Rupert. We are looking forward to seeing the new floor put to use at this year’s All Native Tournament,”

Willa Thorpe, the City's recreation and Community Services Director also had some notes on the project, outlining how the new look gym could lead new opportunities for the city to bring other events to the community.

“Investing in updates like the Russell Gamble Gymnasium gives Rupertites a renewed sense of pride in their local facilities, as well as the opportunity to bolster our bids for a variety of provincial-level events,”

The refurbishment plan was first put out to tender in March of this year, and involved a deep sanding and finishing of the Gymnasium floor, followed by the painting of the court to meet international basketball regulations. The new look to the floor also features the City of Prince Rupert crest and the colours of the Coast Ts'msyen.

As part of the top to bottom approach to the work, the city also had new lights installed at the facility during the course of the summer makeover.

The new look Russell Gamble Gym has already been put to use by the Prince Rupert Minor Basketball Association, with the All Native Tournament qualifying games of later this month making for its next big baptism event.

All of which will lead us to February and the big show itself as the ANBT welcomes participants from across the Northwest, Haida Gwaii and beyond to Prince Rupert for the annual tournament.

You can learn more about the refurbishment project from this information release from the city. More photos from the event can also be viewed from the Recreation Department facebook page.

More on some of the city's work on infrastructure and other projects can be found here.