BOWDEN - Recreational hockey teams in Bowden may have to pay up front for ice time.
Coun. Kerry Kelm made that suggestion during the town's July 22 council meeting, addressing chief administrative officer Greg Skotheim.
"Greg, we're going to be tight with these recreational teams that want to rent the space, that we get payment up front," he asked.
"We had to write off a bunch because some of the teams just never paid, and I think if they're serious, we need to get payment up front before they get on the ice. We have to plan it ahead because the time is in demand, right?"
"I think we get paid in the end, but sometimes it takes a long time," Skotheim replied.
Coun. Carol Pion, whose husband runs the Igloo Arena, indicated that dealing with groups that utilize ice time can be complicated.
"We have to do coordination with administration and staff and stuff like that too, because a lot of that comes with changes too, and so there's overlap and all that kind of stuff," she said.
"There are going to be ice times that are cancelled and things like that, so there's always fees and stuff involved with that."
Kelm said if the town obtains money for ice time up front, that doesn't mean it will keep it if there's a problem.
"If they don't use it we can always refund it, if they do it according to policy. But if they haven't paid and then they don't show up, we've missed that opportunity for somebody else. There's quite a bit of demand for our ice time," he said.
Mayor Robb Stuart said that issue will be addressed as part of council's budget discussions this year.
