The City recently completed engagement to gather insight on sport user group and resident perspectives for consideration in site master planning of the SW Recreation Centre. The information collected through an online survey, open house and sport user group interviews identified priorities for the future centre's use and will be considered alongside prior engagement and studies in the formation of the facility layout, amenity components and supportive amenities development.

Site master plan options will be taken before Council May 6, 2025. The endorsement by Council of a final site master plan will ultimately inform the scope of future design work and budget for all three phases of the SW Recreation Centre.

The SW Recreation Centre site master planning What We Heard Report will be presented to Council during the May 6 scheduled Council meeting.

You can watch the meeting in person at City Hall or online at airdrie.ca/councilmeeting.

The SW Recreation Centre design team will review the feedback received through the online survey and open house and compile it into a report about what we've heard from you. That report will be used in combination with the following perspectives, to create site master plan options:

• Indoor and Outdoor Recreation Needs Assessment (2022)
• Phased Approach to Development of Facility Components and Amenities Report (2023)
• Arena Analysis within SW Recreation Multi-Use Facility Report (2024)
• Traffic Review of a Future Airdrie High School and Recreation Centre Joint-use Site in Southwinds (2023)
• Internal recreation facility staff reviews (2024)
• Sport user group feedback (2024)

Site master plan options will be presented to Council later this spring. Council will select a site master plan they feel best balances project considerations like capital funding, sustainability or sports tourism, with the broadest needs of the community.

The City of Airdrie is planning a new recreation facility in the city's southwest quadrant. The new SW Recreation Centre will address our community's current recreation pressures and the future needs of our rapidly growing, active and diverse population. The City has gathered valuable insights through prior studies, reports and community input to prioritize a core amenity mix that aligns with Airdrie's broadest voiced needs.

Airdrie's population has grown significantly over the past five years and the City's sole multi-use recreation centre is often operating at capacity during prime-time hours. In response, a quarter section of land was purchased in 2018 in partnership with Mattamy Homes and Rocky View School Division. The City acquired a 20.85 per cent share of the land for development of a new multi-purpose recreation centre to be located at the corner of Southwinds Boulevard and Southwinds Drive.

The site master plan for the SW Recreation Centre will be developed with the following considerations:

• Sustainability
• Capital funding
• Current recreation pressures
• Future recreation needs
• Sports tourism

The SW Recreation Centre's first phase will include leisure pools, a 25-metre lane pool, a fitness centre and family friendly play areas. Future phases will include ice arenas, a gymnasium and field house spaces. The facility will incorporate environmental design and accessibility best practices to create a centre that is welcoming for everyone.

The SW Recreation Centre's core amenity mix refers to the foundational focus of each phase. The future centre's phasing and core amenities were finalized by Council on June 5, 2023, after reviewing the Phased Approach to Development of Facility Components and Amenities Summary Report (2023), which recommended the centre be built in a way that addresses the broadest community voiced needs as heard in the Indoor and Outdoor Recreation Needs Assessment Study (2022).