Calgary city council asked to approve ambitious plan for new recreation facilities – Calgary

It’s called ‘GamePLAN’ — an ambitious plan to build more recreation facilities in the city. But, it comes with a heavy price — between $200 million and $250 million.

On Thursday, members of Calgary city council’s community development committee approved it in a unanimous vote.

The vote took place following a public hearing in which dozens of athletes, coaches and other residents lined up to voice their support.

“The benefits, the outcomes that you receive from a robust recreation landscape, go far beyond simply access, it’s also mental health,” said Councilor Courtney Walcott, following the vote.

The committee members were presented with three options to choose from:

1. “Going under” would provide no additional dedicated funding, but warned there would be “a stark decline in service” over the next 25 years with older facilities forced to close, significant impacts on program availability, particularly in new communities.
2. “Staying afloat” would cost between $100 million and $150 million per year and would target investment in new communities and repairs to facilities in established areas. It would not, however, keep pace with population growth.
3. “Making waves” would cost between $200 million and $250 million and would allow the city to keep pace with population growth and provide an “equitable level of service” in both new and established communities.

After hearing from the public, the committee chose the “making waves” option.

The plan claims new recreational facilities are needed because 70 per cent of the public recreation facilities in the city were built more than 35 years ago and many of them are costly to maintain and operate or are nearing the end of their life.

Among the problems it says the city is already facing is a shortage of space for swimming lessons and a shortage of fields for sports like soccer.

“Calgary’s recreation system isn’t measuring up to serve the community you see here,” said Heather Johnson, director of recreation for the City of Calgary.  “You might wonder, how did this happen?  Well it didn’t happen overnight. The problems we’re facing have been building over decades,” added Johnson.

The plan will now be tabled at a full city council meeting for debate.

If approved the city will have until the spring of 2026 to come up with a list of projects it wants to prioritize.

&copy 2025 Global News, a division of Corus Entertainment Inc.