Fundy Region Ice Strategy

The Fundy Region Ice Strategy is an assessment of arena facilities in the greater area. It recommends 8 strategic goals for municipalities and facility operators to improve efficiency, accessibility, and inclusiveness of arena facilities in the Fundy Region.

Fundy Region Ice Strategy - Full Copy - November 2018 (PDF)

Update Report - February 2019 (PDF)

The latest report on the implementation of Fundy Region Ice Strategy (Feb 2019) proposed a 2-step approach to a regional funding model in order to avoid non-resident user fees. Three proposals were discussed at the April 2019 meeting of the Commission board of directors, but did not receive support to move forward. The topic was discussed again at the June 2019 meeting of the Commission board of directors. A motion was approved to refer the matter to the regional collaboration task force; an ad-hoc committee established by the Premier’s Office. Findings of the regional ice strategy, including usage data and arena financials, have been provided to the task force. Prior to the COVID-19 crisis, a report from the task force was expected by the end of March 2020. A new timeline has not been set.

Excerpts from the Fundy Region Ice Strategy

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Goals

Goals	Actions	Timeframe
1. Collect, Share & Protect Data for Evidence-Based Decision Making	• Arena operators shall collect postal codes of participants from organizations that use the facility on a regular basis. The Commission and its members shall work together to support smaller facilities with this task. • Using collected postal codes, the Commission shall provide summary reports that illustrate the crossflow of usage at all arenas in the Fundy Region.	Winter 2018
2. Explore a Regional Funding Formula that Benefits All Communities	• With staff from the Commission, Municipalities, Department of Environment and Local Government, and thorough public consultation, cooperatively develop a regional service agreement and funding formula that is fair to all communities in the Fundy Region. • This agreement and formula shall be developed according the principles in Appendix A. • Details of the agreement and formula shall be presented to the public, councils and LSD advisory committees well in advance of any decision point to enter the agreement.	Fall 2019
3. Regional Endorsement Process	Develop a process to inform endorsement decisions by the Fundy Regional Service Commission Board for capital funding proposals. This tool could then be used to endorse projects such as the replacement or major renovation of arenas.	Fall 2019
4. Continued Collaboration under a Clear Governance Structure	Create a terms-of-reference for a standing committee that shall oversee the on-going outcomes of this strategy and continue to identify new collaboration opportunities. This may include oversight of a service agreement or providing advice on endorsement requests.	Fall 2019
5. Improve Accessibility & Inclusiveness	Work together to improve accessibility of ice facilities, gender equity in ice-sports, and support the development of ice-parasports. More local data is needed to set specific targets and measure progress of this goal.	Long-Term
6. Streamline Policies	Integrate facility policies when possible. This may include a code of conduct and mandatory skating safety equipment policies, as well as public awareness activities.	Long-Term
7. Sponsorship	When considering sponsorship of arena facilities, work with Fundy Region members to investigate regional opportunities.	Long-Term
8. Online Scheduling	When a facility is considering online booking or posting ice-time schedules online, work with Fundy Region members to investigate an integrated regional option. A small pilot project between two facility operators may provide the best starting point in the short term.	Long-Term

Service Providers and Communities without Arenas

This map shows which communities are arena Service Providers that currently subsidize arenas (marked in orange) and which communities do not currently subsidize arenas (marked in blue).