VIKING, Alta. – After two years of silence, the sound of hockey sticks slapping the ice and pucks bouncing off the boards will be heard again in Viking.
Hockey, in the town synonymous with the National Hockey League’s Sutter brothers, was silenced July 7, 2005 when the 53-year-old Carena burned down.
A small prairie town without a hockey arena is a death sentence and residents knew if they wanted their community to survive, they needed to rebuild a sports facility.
“It’s nothing short of spectacular,” said local resident Ian Erickson, as he gave tours of the new $13 million Viking Carena Complex during its grand opening weekend.
Read Also
Agriculture ministers agree to AgriStability changes
federal government proposed several months ago to increase the compensation rate from 80 to 90 per cent and double the maximum payment from $3 million to $6 million
Residents volunteered for committees and when they tired, more volunteers stepped up to plan, paint, lobby and worry where the money would come from when costs kept rising.
Viking mayor Garry Wolosinka said the community’s efforts would be paid off in September when the ice is put into the arena and figure skating and hockey are back in town.
“It was very hard and challenging work, but it will prove to be beneficial to the community.”
For the past two years families have driven to surrounding communities so their kids could play hockey. Some families clocked 5,000 kilometres a month.
“It’s been tough on families and especially tough on the parents of hockey and figure skaters,” said Wolosinka.
Other parents asked their kids to hang up their skates until the arena was rebuilt.
Brad Majeska said without the Carena, the town lost its centre.
“It’s the heart and soul of the whole town. In the past two winters you didn’t see a lot of traffic in town, especially on the weekends,” said Majeska, who drove his two hockey-playing sons to Holden and Wainwright to play.
When he wasn’t doing that, Majeska volunteered his time at the Carena, putting in hundreds of hours to get the project completed.
“It was a roller-coaster. Some weeks you didn’t think you were getting anywhere with the project,” he said.
With the price rising from the original $8.8 million estimate, the community was asked to help keep costs down.
Volunteers picked up paint brushes and rollers and painted the entire inside of the building, saving more than $120,000. They did the job for $18,000, the price of supplies.
“It was a money saving venture, but it gives the community a greater sense of ownership,” said Wolosinka.
Even young children volunteered to dust the seats and sweep the floor to help out.
Once the ice surface is in, work will begin on the second phase of the complex, which will include a weight room, day care, library and dance studio. Building a more versatile facility was key to getting community involvement, said Wolosinka.
“When it’s all completed, there will be something in the facility for everyone. The unfortunate fire has turned out to be a blessing in disguise.”
Duane Sutter said having the Carena only a block away from school when he was growing up, was key to his family’s hockey success. He said he and his brothers brought their hockey bags to school on the bus, dumped them by the door and lugged them to the arena after school.
“It was where we played six or seven months of the year,” said Sutter in town for the opening ceremonies.
“This will become home for a lot of families.”
