A local hockey player says the condition of some dressing rooms at Rotary Place is ‘disgusting’ and believes the city is off-side in its upkeep of the popular rink.
“There is black mould in the dressing room we use,” said John Falcon, who plays recreational hockey Sunday mornings. “Half the shower heads in the one dressing room don’t work. What would it take to fix? $20? Fix the goddamn things!”
He said the cover is off a toilet paper dispenser, the counters are sub-par and quickly deteriorating, while the mould is “dangerous.”
“How can the City of Orillia allow that? It’s not acceptable. It’s disgusting.”
Three weeks ago, Falcon posted photos of the conditions on his Facebook page. He also emailed his ward councillor, Mason Ainsworth.
A similar situation happened three years ago in another dressing room at Rotary Place. At that time, he also contacted Ainsworth and then-Ward 3 councillor Jeff Clark.
“Clark got back to me ASAP,” said Falcon. “A couple of days later, I met with Jeff and (Ward 4 Coun. Tim) Lauer at the rink. I showed them the problem and they assured me” it would be fixed. He said the politicians also promised him the conditions would be re-evaluated yearly.
Falcon said, back then, a stainless steel sink was installed in that dressing room and the mess was cleaned up. But nothing has been done since, he claims.
This time around, Lauer answered Falcon's SOS call. Lauer admitted the problem is a lingering one.
“When we did Rotary Place, we did a design/build,” Lauer said. “The contractor says ‘I’ll build it and this is what we’re going to use.’ Unfortunately, the quality of fixtures and counters in those washrooms were sort of overlooked as far as quality, so we’ve been fighting with them ever since.”
Lauer agrees the counters and fixtures should have been higher-quality, industrial grade in order to put up with the punishment that comes with the amount of use that occurs in a public, year-round arena.
The veteran councillor passed along Falcon's concerns to Ray Merkley, the city’s director of parks, recreation and culture.
“They are aware of it … and will be addressing it,” said Lauer, who noted circulation/ventilation is a problem in the dressing rooms. He said the topic could be discussed during budget deliberations in January.
While Lauer concedes it’s not ideal, he also said it’s not unusual to hear such concerns about dressing rooms.
“In all honesty, I’ve been playing hockey a long time and (been) in a lot of dressing rooms and people have been complaining about dressing rooms since Day 1,” he said.
He went on to add: “For sure it should be addressed – no doubt about it.”
Falcon, who is considering taking his concerns about the mould to the health unit, said the “sad state” of the dressing rooms does not reflect well on the city.
“This is what a $32-million facility and they’re not taking care of it. It’s supposed to be showcasing Orillia. It’s very disappointing,” he said. “How are they going to maintain the new recreation centre they’re building?”
He said he is also disappointed in Ainsworth. Falcon said the councillor has never responded to his emails; not three years ago and not this time.
“That’s your responsibility as a councillor,” says Falcon. “That’s really disappointing. (Lauer) responded and is trying to help and he’s not even my ward councillor.”
