The Fort Frances Minor Hockey Association has been denied permission by town council to run a separate canteen upstairs in the arena kitchen during hockey tournaments and Muskie games this season.
“This puts a challenge up for us to raise funds,” noted Dave Egan, a member of the “Ice for Kids” committee that spearheaded construction of the second arena here.
“The kitchen was a good fundraiser for the teams.”
He also noted the kitchen acted like a gathering place in between and after games and that no longer will be available.
“It was a good environment during tournaments–it was a nice environment and gathering place in between games for the fans,” he reasoned.
FFMHA president Lynn Kellar had written a letter to Community Services manager George Bell requesting access to the auditorium and kitchen to operate a canteen for minor hockey tournaments.
“The money raised in the kitchen by the volunteer efforts of our parents has gone towards purchasing goods from local merchants to offer at the penny table,” Kellar wrote.
“The goods purchased are then raffled off to the kids participating in the tournaments.
“The funds raised from the tournaments are also used in the minor hockey general revenue fund to help offset our fees,” Kellar noted.
Kellar stressed the FFMHA feels it’s “essential” to still operate the kitchen in the auditorium during its home tournaments.
“The loss of the kitchen facilities during our tournaments will certainly make covering all of our expenses for tournaments difficult as we have not built this into our fee structure,” he wrote.
But the Community Services executive recommended council deny the request, which council did at its Nov. 16 meeting.
“Since the decision to provide a business opportunity for food service at the Memorial Sports Centre, I do not believe it is practical to let competing interests operate during large events such as hockey tournaments and Muskie games,” Bell wrote to council.
“Minor hockey should work with the successful proponent so their needs are provided for in the area of food services,” he added.
Bell would not comment on the issue when contacted by the Times last week.
Kellar noted the decision is forcing the FFMHA to really take a look at what they have to cut.
“Minor hockey is still willing to sit down and work at it again if the town is interested,” remarked Kellar.
Coun. Struchan Gilson noted the canteen is expected to make about $12,000-15,000 this season but if minor hockey is running a separate kitchen on the side during tournaments, that won’t happen.
“No one is going to take the tender for the canteen if minor hockey is running one on the side,” he argued. “[It’s] one of those small-town issues which gets very emotional.”
Coun. Gilson said if someone has a solution, council would listen, but he also suggested one way out is to have minor hockey make a deal with whoever gets the canteen tender to see if they can make a deal to run it during tournaments.
“The obvious answer is for minor hockey to run the canteen themselves,” he said. “That was offered but they couldn’t come to an agreement on how much to rent the canteen for.”
Fort Frances Times
Local News from Across the Rainy River District
