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Last week, we took a high level look at the year 2022 and were thankful for the Club and Board for the work they have put in during a tumultuous year.
Today, we'd like to take a more targeted review of the year that was.
January 17, 2022 will go down in the history books as the day that changed the Pickering Soccer Centre for ever. In the first instance, it was definitely for the worst. Dave Benning, Hollie Babut, and Dave Lord had been building our on-field programs throughout 2021 so that even when we were forced off the field due to Covid in late 2021, we were still very hopeful that when coming back onto the field in February 2022, it would be a positive experience and would prepare us nicely for the Outdoor 2022 season. With the return to play only 14 days away, Southern Ontario was hit with the worst blizzard in 15 years! Despite our Facility Manager, Joe Roccasalva having the dome in perfect condition to deal with the storm, it came in harder and quicker than anyone had expected, and the dome simply couldn't maintain pressure.
Under the guidance of our maintenance contractor, we shut down the power in order to let the dome come down in a controlled manner, and within 24 hours, the loss adjustor was on site to review the damage. Despite the efforts of volunteers, club staff, and contractors from the City, we simply could not remove the accumulated ice and snow quickly enough. We were finally told that no further action would be taken to work on the dome until a sustained period of warmer temperatures ensued. That meant a wait until early April, but by Easter weekend, the dome was back up, although still in need of repair and a thorough cleanup job.
As staff arrived back to the Club after the Easter weekend, they noticed the dome was collapsed again and water had flooded the dome and the office space. Further investigation pointed to a broken standpipe inside the dome that had flooded the entire turf and spilled over into the office space. While the office space was dried and usable within the week, the turf still remained flooded. The nature of the work now changed from a dome replacement to both dome and turf. This resulted in the City needing to adjust their search for a solution.
The PFC Board of Directors saw an opportunity here. Since the dome was opened in 2014, there had been comments made about the turf layout, and also about the demand for other usage. Thus, in August, a presentation was made by past-President Corrado Roccasalva to the senior staff at the City, who in turn presented the concept to the City Council. City Council understood the concept clearly and believed in the vision of the Club, voting to approve it unanimously in September at a meeting attended by Corrado and current PFC President Ed Whitehead.
Clean up work was able to begin on the dome in late September with crews removing the dome membrane, lighting and insulation, followed by the turf field and running track. In November, we were finally able to start the rebuild with our hard court pad ready for pickleball, volleyball, futsal, and more. New revolving doors have arrived and been installed to the building and we await the new dome membrane any day now.
Not only has this been tough on you, our members, but also on the staff and Board. The PFC Executive Board continues to meet weekly as we get through this period, and we are incredibly grateful for their volunteer support and their passion.
Off the field we have dealt with a lot of hurt too. This year we have lost Stephanie Riexinger (mother and Team Manager), Lulu Sibanda (Recreational player), Jamal Anthony Drysdale (former Competitive player) and Tony Cancellara (Club supporter and All Abilities sponsor). They will be honoured as part of our AGM proceedings in early 2023, and with commemorative trees once the new building and landscaping are complete.
In the final instance, while 2022 was the year we thought we would bounce back from the pandemic, we now know that 2023 will be the year we bounce back from ALL that has challenged us in recent times. We will celebrate those we have lost, and celebrate with a stronger, larger, #PFCproud family on the field.
Happy New Year to everyone!
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