Powell River Recreation Complex’s arena and rink ceilings are undergoing retrofit to make them more energy efficient.
Workers are currently using lifts to elevate the new rolls of ceiling material high above the arena floor.
City manager of recreation Neil Pukesh said city council has approved the initiative as part of the energy enhancements that are being undertaken at the recreation complex.
“It’s a reflective material that goes on up against the ceiling and it cuts down on refrigeration costs by anywhere from 15 to 20 per cent per year,” said Pukesh. “It’s going to improve the insulation in the arena, it will improve the lighting, it will be brighter, and it should improve the acoustics as well. The ice-making equipment doesn’t need to be running as hard. It’s going to culminate in some good energy savings for the city.”
Powell River Community Forest has provided a grant of up to $91,641 for the project. The city also received a hydro savings incentive grant for the project of approximately $18,000. The projected cost is about $81,000, according to Pukesh.
He added that the push is on for getting the ceiling completed in Hap Parker Arena before the end of July before the city starts up the ice plant.
“I’m hearing it should be another week and then we’ll move over to the rink,” said Pukesh. “It’s going to improve the aesthetics in there as well.”
Pukesh said it is a project the city has been looking at for a while.
“We made a good push to city council and they really supported the energy efficiency as part of our capital works projects,” said Pukesh. “It’s a good operating efficiency. We’re starting to see these installs happening in arenas through British Columbia and across North America for that matter. This is one we feel we needed to move forward on.”
The recreation complex has also received a retrofit on the main electrical panel in the compressor room.
Pukesh said the equipment was outdated and some efficiencies have been added with the installation.
“We should see some savings on our equipment’s wear and tear moving forward,” he added.
