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Aldergrove Your Hometown Community Newspaper for over 56 Years
| Thursday, December 24, 2015
Kids’ Horse Camp aims for 1,000 Smiling Faces Faces!
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Page 6: Christmas Bird Count Coming Soon
Page 3
Community Booster Has Right Spirit
Pool canopy plan approved NOTE: An earlier version of this story incorrectly indicated that plans for the recreation facility included the potential to one day enclose the pool. This is not the case. The Star regrets the error. Aldergrove Star
KURT LANGMANN PHOTO
Doug Hadley retired from the RCMP but continues to serve his community in so many ways, including grilling up food for the public at the Aldergrove Light-up Christmas Parade and Party last Saturday. Doug now manages a poultry farm but finds the time to serve as president of the Aldergrove Legion, as well as a contributing member of Aldergrove Rotary Club.
Fire at demolished school site By MONIQUE TAMMINGA Aldergrove Star
A fire was set to debris left during the demolition of the Aldergrove school site on Thursday morning. At 3:09 a.m. on Dec. 17, Township fire crews responded to a call about the ‘bonfire’ at the school site at 272 Street and Fraser Highway. Three fire engines responded and Fraser Highway had to be blocked off while fire trucks accessed hydrants, said Township fire chief Stephen Gamble.
There were several locations where the fire was deliberately set, said Gamble. It didn’t take crews long to knock down the blaze. The demolition company was called in to use their machine to tear the pile apart which stopped the fire from gathering momentum, he said. The old school site was knocked down on Dec. 14 and 15. A fence has been put up around the debris and there are ‘do not enter’ signs put up.
Township of Langley Council has authorized expenditure of $280,000 for structural enhancements to the base building and footings that will allow for future construction of a canopy over the six-lane, 25-metre outdoor pool that will be built as part of the Aldergrove Recreation Centre. In late February, council will receive further information and decide whether to include the canopy in the construction project, which is to be completed in May of 2018, or to retain the option to add it on in the future. Constructing the canopy, which will feature wood laminate beams and steel columns with no walls, would cost an additional $1,574,600. “Council gave serious consideration to fully enclosing the pool and making it an indoor facility, but there are significant capital costs involved, along with even more significant operating costs,” said Mayor Jack Froese. “This facility will be used by people of all ages and interests, all year round, and will complement — not duplicate — existing Township recreation and aquatic opportunities.” Approved by Township council in June of 2015, the Aldergrove Recreation Centre will be constructed at 27032 Fraser Highway, at the site of the former Aldergrove Elementary School. Along with the outdoor pool, it will feature a two-level, 550-seat arena, fitness centre, indoor walking track, and multipurpose rooms. The outdoor water park will include waterslides, tidal pool, current channel, a children’s’ aqua structure, playground, and picnic area. An environmentally conscious project, the $26 million complex will heat the pool in the fall and winter with excess energy produced from cooling the ice. It will be home to the Aldergrove Kodiaks junior hockey team, Aldergrove Minor Hockey, the Aldergrove Figure Skating club, and an anticipated new Aldergrove Swim Club. Froese noted that the recreation centre will draw people from throughout the region to downtown Aldergrove and be a great step towards revitalizing Aldergrove’s downtown core. An update on the project was provided to council on Dec. 14 by Township staff, who noted that deconstruction of Aldergrove Elementary School is now in progress and expected to be finished in March, 2016. For more information, visit tol.ca/ARC
Aldergrove Elementary school was torn down.
Proposed canopy for Aldergrove Rec Centre outdoor pool.
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