Past, Present and Future
After 6 years, GPRRC has some notable successes under their belt. There are a variety of projects that have helped establish a baseline inventory of recreational facilities in the region, as well as Household Surveys to identify what residents value and what the barriers are towards their participation in recreation opportunities. By identifying what the region has, and what the residents want and need, the Committee can plan for future opportunities and identify any gaps that may exist in the region.
2023
- Investigated Online Sports Streaming Services for regional facilities.
2022
- Community Needs Assessment Survey completed May 2022. This survey invited regional user groups to provide feedback on regional facility usage and pandemic challenges.
2021
- Ice Allocations Framework (2021) which helps create equal distribution of ice time to user groups within the region.
- Presentation at Alberta Parks and Recreation Association (ARPA) Conference 2021.
- Created inventory of Municipally and non-Municipal Owned Recreation Facilities.
- Completed Ball Diamond Behaviour Guidelines.
- Distributed Community Group Questionnaire to regional sport organizations.
- Participation in the City of Grande Prairie’s Avondale High School Sites Area Redevelopment Plan (Multi-Stage process from 2019-2021).
2020
- Success of 2020 Regional Household Survey.
- Regional Arena User Behaviour Guidelines & Provincial collaboration with ARPA.
- Hosted Regional Ice and Ball Diamond Manager meetings.
- Updated GPRRC Facility Inventory.
- Participation in the Clairmont Arena Needs Assessment.
- Participated in Provincial Arena reopening task force during Covid-19 Pandemic.
2019
- Creation of GPRRC Implementation Plan.
- Investigated funding modeling.
- Presented at ARPA Leaders Summit.
- Hosted Regional Training for Elected Officials.
- Developed workflow to support the Project Proposal Applications.
- Hosted first Regional Ice Managers Meeting.
- Clairmont Arena Closure (December 2019); Regional Ice Managers Contact list was able to help displaced users find alternative ice within the Region.
- "Black ice" Tracking in regional arenas started.
Present and Ongoing Work
- Rural sports programming
- Black Ice tracking
- Facility Allocation Template
- Regional Ice and Ball managers annual allocation meeting
- Ongoing Regional contribution the GPRSC Sport Drop in List
- Sharing of Grant Opportunities
- Sharing of training opportunities regionally so that more participants can attend when held locally, keeping costs lower without having to travel to large urban centers.
Future
As the Grande Prairie Region grows and evolves, the GPRRC’s aim is to continue exploring how our municipalities can work together to implement the recommendations found in the Grande Prairie Regional Recreation Master Plan (2016). When our communities needs shift, so will our focus, with municipal collaboration for recreational opportunities always remaining at the forefront of our minds.
