A rezoning application is leaving city council members wondering if municipal taxpayers could some day be on the hook for the operating costs of a proposed outdoor sports complex.

It would feature a rubberized running track and at least two artificial turf soccer pitches, to begin with.

Tony Gaw, who heads up the Yukon Outdoor Sports Complex Association, and Steve Bartsch of Associated Engineering (contracted to work on the project) brought forward the plans for the facility to council on Monday evening.

The building of the structure over 7.17 hectares of land is a Yukon government project, which the association would lease and manage after it’s opened.

The rezoning application would see four areas that were zoned for a variety of residential homes changed to a parks and recreation zone. An environmental protection lot and public service lot would also be rezoned for parks and recreation for the proposed facility.

The area off Casca Boulevard near Whistle Bend Way was selected due to its proximity to the public service lot – envisioned as a site for a new high school, where the two roads meet.

As Gaw told council, the possibility of an outdoor sports complex has been talked about for about five years, coming out of a “lack of appropriate facilities” for local soccer players.

While a number of school fields in town are used for outdoor practise, Gaw pointed out they are often in poor shape and used by many people (including dog owners who leave dog feces there that have to be cleaned up by others). That doesn’t lend itself to athlete development, he said.

A facility that has artificial turf means the season could start earlier. (Currently, the start of the minor soccer season is dependent on when the fields thaw, and artificial turf generally allows for an earlier start.)

It would also mean some fields in the city could be left alone for a season to re-grow and recoup from heavy use.

While the proposal started with a desire to have better outdoor soccer facilities, when F.H. Collins Secondary School lost its running track (though a smaller one was built in a lower field) due to the construction of the new school, it prompted discussions on a new outdoor track.

Vanier Catholic and Porter Creek Secondary Schools were looked at in exploring where a new track could go, but neither has enough space, Gaw said.

He went on to point out the F.H. Collins track was a gravel-type surface, which left athletes who went Outside to competition or to attend university not accustomed to the rubberized track that’s common elsewhere.

It’s time Whitehorse and the Yukon have facilities that lend themselves to better athlete development, he argued.

Thus a rubberized outdoor track is now included in the plans for the Whistle Bend facility, with interest from a number of groups in future phases of the facility.

An initial Community Development Fund grant was provided by the Yukon government for the group to have a conceptual design for the facility. Associated Engineering has now been awarded the contract on the detailed design for the first phase of the facility.

Along with the soccer pitches and running track, the first phase would also see bleachers, fencing, lighting, landscaping, access and infrastructure put in place.

The entire facility at full build-out is anticipated to cost upward of $8 million.

Gaw emphasized the need for better athletic facilities in the city, noting the numerous groups that could use the facility, including the possibility of aboriginal sporting practices or events in the winter when the fields aren’t being used for soccer. The proposal, however, raised many questions for council members.

Coun. Dave Stockdale was the first to wonder what it could mean down the road for operating costs, asking Gaw if the city could have some sort of guarantee the city wouldn’t be asked to fund the operations for the facility.

It’s estimated the facility would cost approximately $20,000 each year to operate, though council questioned those numbers, pointing to the need for staffing and other maintenance needs.

Mayor Dan Curtis was quick to point out that Stockdale’s proposal for a guarantee would be something for city manager Christine Smith to take to Yukon government officials. He also expressed the same concern during discussion.

Members also wondered aloud if the territory’s plan to build the facility meant there was some sort of new funding formula in place for recreational facilities.

And, what about the Yukon Horse and Rider Association, asked Coun. Jocelyn Curteanu, pointing out the development of Whistle Bend saw that group leave its recreational facility in the area. Now another outdoor recreational space is being built.

The possibility of the facility being used for major events like the Western Canada Summer Games had city council members questioning whether the city had been asked if it was interested in hosting such an event, which comes with a number of costs.

The benefit of having an outdoor facility in the neighbourhood next to a possible school was highlighted. Councillors, though, were quick to clarify the site would not be a neighbourhood field residents could just stop by on an afternoon to kick a ball around.

Rather, the facility would be secured and accessed by user groups and those paying to use it, a similar model to most indoor recreational facilities in town.

Pat Ross, the city’s planning manager, drew on his own experience, comparing it to the Canada Games Centre (CGC).

Like a number of parents who go to the CGC to watch their kids participate in soccer or other sports, he said, it becomes a bit of a community space and social time as parents sit together, chat and take in their kids’ games.

Coun. Betty Irwin said she “couldn’t help wondering” what the territory’s planned $8-million expenditure could mean for other communities if it was spent on recreational facilities throughout the territory which need work done.

While no financial obligation is being sought with the city being asked to change the zoning of the land, council members emphasized the “business plan” for the facility should be considered.

“It’s dreadfully important,” Irwin argued.

Coun. Mike Gladish (who has his own experiencing managing a recreational facility as his full-time job) wondered how the city could go ahead with zoning if members aren’t comfortable with the plan for how it will be run.

Curtis noted council members may be restricted by the Municipal Act in what they consider when looking at the zoning.

Council directed Smith to take its concerns and questions to territorial officials working on the project before it comes back for a vote on first reading next week.

If first reading is approved, residents will get a chance to let officials know what they think about it at a public hearing during the March 23 council meeting.

A report on the hearing would then come forward on April 7, and council would vote second and third readings at the April 13 council meeting.