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    • Calgary sports show support for proposed fieldhouse project

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    A city committee is recommending council give the green light to start detailed design work on a proposed $380-million multisport fieldhouse.

    While a new indoor home for Calgary athletes is inching closer to the finish line, there's still one major hurdle to overcome: where is the money going to come from?

    "As exciting as this meeting is, notably absent is having some sort of direct line of communication with the province and the (federal government)," said Jason Zaran with the Calgary Multisport Fieldhouse Society.

    "I find that disappointing."

    The city has $109 million set aside for the project but will need to receive financial support from the other two levels of government to keep it in play.

    Jasmine Mian, the city's Ward 3 councillor and head of the fieldhouse committee, says there have been talks with the province and federal governments, but they have not received solid commitments from either yet.

    "The conversations we've had so far, they've all been really positive. They're all, 'This is the type of thing we'd probably support but bring us something a little more down the line,'" she said.

    About a dozen speakers representing various sporting groups in Calgary spoke at city hall on Monday.

    They each described how Calgary is lacking the indoor space to train and compete in the colder months.

    "Calgary is well-known for producing high-level soccer players, but in order for this to continue and improve, we need the city's support of our young athletes, so we can compete with and be the best anywhere," said Cheridan Johnson, a minor soccer player speaking on behalf of her association.

    City administration also unveiled some possible indoor configurations for how the three sporting surfaces could be used for several sports.

    There would be a track and field space that could be reworked for various events; gymnasium areas for basketball, pickleball, wrestling and volleyball; and an indoor turfed area for soccer, football, cricket and more.

    "We're going to have trade-offs," Mian said.

    "Volleyball is going to want a higher roof and different sports are going to want different flooring and all of those things are going to lead in. Administration has a tough job of bringing forward the best possible compromise between all of it while making sure it's specific enough to meet people's needs," she said.

    If the project moves forward, it will be built in the Foothills Athletic Park and involve demolishing the old Burns baseball stadium.

    A more detailed timeline will be determined when and if funding is secured, though officials say the earliest a new fieldhouse could be built is by 2027. 

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