Kevin Wheeler was preparing his young figure skaters for the show of their life when a notice from the city was emailed to the Preston Figure Skating Club stating they had just days to accept an offer to move their prop shed to a new location.
It was the early hours of March 25, the morning of the club's 60th annual gala, that the email came through saying the city wanted to move their props to Rogers Drive or the Preston Scout House on Queenston Road.
If accepted and signed, the two parties would move forward with further details of the move.
Currently, the figure skating club’s home at the Kinsmen Centre is slated to be demolished to make room for more parking as part of the Preston Memorial Auditorium expansion project.
“We received the notice on the Saturday morning of our show,” Wheeler said.
“It said the city is exercising its right to terminate the license agreement. Obviously no one had an opportunity on that day to read an email. We were all going in 45 directions. There was so much going on, when I looked at it the next day I had a lot of emotions.”
A move itself was not unexpected, but the timing of the notice and new locations are less than ideal, Wheeler says.
The props currently used by the club range in size, including some up to 12 feet tall. Wheeler says the Rogers Drive location doesn’t have the accessibility needed to get some of them inside. He also emphasized the Queenston Road option wasn't feasible due to the layout of the building.
The other major issue is the ability to easily transport the props back and forth to the arena. Their current location shares the same parking lot as the auditorium, whereas the proposed new spot is almost five kilometres away, near the 401.
“We’re going to have to go to the 401 with our stuff,” he said.
“We expressed concerns about the building. We have no idea how to get props in the doors as some of them don't fit. I don’t know how we can move it. We’ll have to use a transport truck for some of it. The logistics is going to be nuts.”
After the successful gala, Wheeler had the unenviable duty of reaching out and informing members of the news. He expected a lot of disappointment from the skaters and families.
Aside from the disappointment, the club has been left feeling frustrated by the entire process.
“We expected something would be coming, but the last meeting we had was the end of January and we kept asking for the plan and we kept getting the 'we'll get back to you right away.' But that was never followed up on,” Wheeler said.
“It felt like a slap in the face doing it then. I’m not surprised, at the end of the day we had to move and I figured that was going to happen. I don’t know why they didn't let us know. We’re treated like a tenant. The personality is out of it. Sign on the dotted line and get out.”
When reached for comment, the City of Cambridge declined to make someone available for an interview but supplied a written statement saying receipt of the notice must be confirmed by March 31, a deadline that has since been extended to April 6.
It stopped short of saying the club must accept.
“Since the fall of 2022, the city has been working with the Preston Figure Skating Club on relocation options,” the statement said.
“As part of the notice issued to the club, the city asked that receipt be confirmed by March 31. As well, the June 19 deadline to vacate the location was provided to the club to ensure that the club had plenty of time to make a final selection of the location options provided by the city and put plans in place to relocate, while protecting construction timelines for the Preston Auditorium.”
When asked for the other location options, the city confirmed the old Kin Canada building on Rogers Drive that it recently took ownership of and the Preston Scout House.
Regardless of whether the club signs the notice, they're still required to vacate the property.
If they choose not to sign, Wheeler is under the impression that the club must find their own space to store their props and costumes. An option that could cost the club thousands of dollars per year.
“Whether we sign it or not we have to be out by June 16,” he said.
“If we don’t sign, we have to find our own space. We can’t just start leasing a building.”
