No timeline for opening new Simmons Sports Centre, says Charlottetown councillor

Crews are narrowing down the location of a leak that's preventing Charlottetown's new Simmons Sports Centre from opening, but it remains uncertain when that work will be finished.

Staff discovered earlier this month they couldn't make ice because of a leak in the pipes within the arena's concrete ice surface slab.

"We just can't put a timeline or a timeframe on it because it would be premature to do that," Coun. Mitchell Tweel, the city's parks, recreation and leisure activities committee chair, told CBC News on Saturday.

"If you go ahead and put a timeline then you're creating an expectation."

In a news release Friday, the city said crews didtesting topinpoint the location of the problem in order to complete repairs.

The release notes that the work is complexbecause the infrastructure includes around 18 kilometres of piping.

Tweel said the leak appears to be near where one of the ice surface's blue-lines would be.

While city staff will prepare a report on the cost of the repairs once they're done, Tweel believes the work will be under warranty.

'Hindsight is 20/20'

The building wasexpected to open Oct. 14, but the city pushed that back to allow the contractor to find and repair the leak.

The arena replaces the original Simmons Sports Centre, which was built more than 50 years ago. That structure, which sat next to the new facility on North River Road, was recently demolished.

Tweel said council discussed keeping the former rink open until the new sports centre was ready, but some funding for the project was tied to the old building coming down.

"We were quite confident that we would be good to go. Testing was done right up until just a few days before the anticipated opening date," he said.

"Hindsight is 20/20. It's easy to say now we should've left it, and that's a worthy debate."

The new sports centre will be open year-round, and features an NHL-sized rink with seating for nearly 600 people, an indoor walking track and an outdoor swimming pool.

Tweel said other locations like the Eastlink Centre and the Cody Banks Arena are being looked at for ice time while repairs are completed at the new arena.

He said he has "complete faith" the contractor will get the leak repaired and have the centre open as soon as possible.

"It is just an outstanding facility,I would suggest probably one of the nicest community facilities in Atlantic Canada," Tweel said.