The town of Bridgewater is considering new ideas for the former Memorial Arena.
A group of masters students from the Dalhousie School of Design have presented four proposals to council.
Group member Ross Grant says they wanted their design to have practical uses.
“We wanted to take the town policy and extract as much of the needs of the community from that as we could,” he says, “and just produce a design that would hopefully offer something that the town really needs right now.”
Grant says they worked in partnership with the town throughout the process.
“There was great support from the planning department. They provided really good feedback and comments.”
Their recommended proposal would see $7-million spent on renovations.
The design includes seniors housing, a room for youth programming and even space for the farmers market to run year round.
While the students grades don’t depend on whether council uses their proposal, Grant says they’ll be watching to see what happens next.
Meanwhile, Mayor David Walker says the proposals were more than just a fun exercise.
“I think there’s definitely a serious tone,” he says. “I think sometimes we get so caught up in our communities that we don’t always see what’s possible.”
The town also has one expression of interest waiting in the wings.
However, Walker says, council isn’t in a rush to make a decision.
He says they want to take their time to consider all options.
