After breaking ground on the future site of the Aquatic and Community Centre only last October, the City of Côte Saint-Luc has completed construction of the facility and proudly welcomed the public to an open house on Sunday, August 28.
Despite the presence of Hurricane Irene, huge crowds came out to see for themselves our newest pride and joy. The ACC is located at 5794 Parkhaven Ave. (corner Mackle Rd.). There was music and entertainment for kids, a ribbon-cutting ceremony and water polo and synchronized swimming exhibitions. Also, the public was invited to tour the building.
Conservative Senator Judith Seidman, Liberal Member of Parliament for Mount Royal Irwin Cotler and D'Arcy McGee Liberal MNA Lawrence Bergman were among the dignitaries who joined us. They are pictured with Mayor Housefather and I at the left, with the pools in the background.
“Getting the ACC built on time and on budget is a tremendous accomplishment for our city council,” our Mayor Anthony Housefather said. “I have no doubt that this facility—both the aquatic side and community side—will become a community hub together with the adjoining gymnasium and outdoor pool. I certainly plan on spending a lot of time there myself.”
The ACC will open for business on Tuesday, September 6. Regular building hours will be weekdays from 6 am to 11 pm, and weekends from 8 am to 10 pm.
ACC Open House / Portes ouvertes CCA from CSL TV on Vimeo.
The $18 million ACC took just 11 months to build. The ACC was designed to promote and facilitate active lifestyles and promote wellness, in the holistic sense of the term. People will be able to benefit from an indoor competition pool, an indoor recreation pool, a fitness room, a teen lounge, a games rooms, a kids room and babysitting service, a large rentable space for parties and conferences, a dance and aerobic studio, senior lounges, a library branch, an art studio and more.
The governments of Quebec and Canada gave Côte Saint-Luc grants totaling up to a maximum of $11.57 million, which equals two-thirds of the costs of building the facility. The City of Côte Saint-Luc funded the other third. The City of Côte Saint-Luc appreciates its partners who worked closely with council and staff on the ACC. MHPM Project Managers Inc. oversaw this building project and design plans for the new building. Pomerleau was the design builder and the arch.
As a city council we are so proud to bring such a magnificent facility to our community. I would like to single out our City Manager Tanya Abramovitch, Director of Parks and Recreation David Taveroff , Project Manager Anthony Palumbo and co-chairs of the ACC Committee, Councillors Ruth Kovac and Mitchell Brownstein.
Walking through the building today was a surreal experience. Having visited during the construction phases, it is hard to believe it is now a fully funtioning facility which I know will become a draw for more young families and retired senior citizens to move here. At the right, Councillor Brownstein and I admire some of the machines in the workout room.
Sidney Margles, the one-time broadcaster and TMR councillor, now chairs our Senior Men's Club. He proudly welcomed visitors to their new headquarters. No longer will they have to rent the second floor of the Côte Saint-Luc Shoppping Centre. Sid told me that the Men's Club's annual Dinner Dance will take place at the ACC on October 30, instead of at a rented hall in St. Laurent as has been the case in recent years.
You can go to our special website setup for the ACC for more details. Also, read Councillor Glenn J. Nashen's excellent blog posting.