The Best Seats
In The House

With what is one of the most recognizable names in personal development and athletics across North America, the YMCA organization is deeply connected with our roots here in our hometown of Almonte, Ontario.

As many are aware, the founder of basketball, Dr. James Naismith was born here in our fair town but what remains unknown to many is that the sport was actually developed elsewhere. In fact, it wasn’t until Naismith was studying at what was then known as the YMCA International Training School in Springfield, Massachusetts that he invented the game when tasked with interesting pupils in physical exercise.

An aquatics centre often proves to be the most immersive and carefree environment in a community. Bringing one to your neighbourhood will definitely prove to be a worthy feat, although the initial planning can be a little challenging.

The same goes if you are planning to renovate an existing aquatics facility or if you're turning a pre-existing building into an aquatics centre for the first time.

Whether you've worked in this field before or not, modern innovations bring about quite a few fresh considerations that you should keep in mind in order to make your aquatics centre the absolute best choice in the area. Here's a quick guide to get you on track.

Located on the Island of Montreal, Lachine is a borough of the city in southwestern Quebec. Thought to have been named in 1667 after its then owner René-Robert Cavelier de La Salle attempted to find passage to Asia while exploring the interior of North America. It was aptly named Lachine, (from the French language, la Chine (China)) and has a colourful history leading up to its incorporation as a city in 1872 and then finally being merged as a part of the City of Montreal in 2002.

In one of our more recent projects this fall, our team was on the ground in Lachine, working closely with our partners at ANA Architecture on a retractable bleacher project at a local high school.

Following some good initial conversations and the makings of an established relationship with ANA Architecture, they reached out to our team for specifications on a new telescopic bleacher for the school’s gymnasium.

There are plenty of gadgets out there today, all created with the goal of helping hockey players become the best on their team, but what’s really necessary?

Out of all the techniques and tactics being employed today to help young hockey players prove their worth in the rink, cross-ice hockey is among the most successful of them all.

Why Cross-Ice Hockey?

For younger players, cross-ice hockey came to the forefront back in the 1970s although it wasn’t adopted into American and Canadian hockey leagues until just recently. It sprouted from a study that realized for amateur youth hockey games, players had an average of .5 shots per game.

Aluminum bleachers are a popular option for sports and social events because they are convenient and cost efficient. However, due to ADA compliancy regulations, assembly areas in arenas, stadiums and event centres with a bleacher setup, must provide accommodations for wheelchairs and companion seating. This means the addition of not only seating spaces but also ramps and handrails to ensure safe and easy access.

With so many venues having been in existence for thirty years or more, there is a growing concern that these regulations cannot be met without incurring massive renovations and expenses. Some of the older seating designs that are most affected by the recent regulations include telescoping bleachers, fixed stadium seating, outdoor grandstands and auditorium seating.

Back at one of Canada’s top-ranked independent schools, we once again found ourselves on the beautiful campus of the Country Day School just outside of Toronto. Included on the 100-acre campus is a completely customized grandstand bleacher our team had the pleasure of designing and installing with help from our partners at Ash Stevenson over the early summer months.

Upon completion of the bleacher seating structure, talks immediately ensued that had our team deeply rooted into the finishing touches that would be added to this brand-new structure. Heading back to the prestigious school, stakeholders within the organization were interested in finishing the bleacher with a customized windscreen that would cement the grandstand as the focal point of Country Day School athletics.

As the year progresses and the colder months approach, the need for winterization and protection of athletic fields and equipment must be considered. Regardless of the field’s purpose, be it football, baseball, soccer or any other athletic use, anyone in the athletic industry knows the importance of being vigilant and actively planning and preparing for the winter months is crucial in protecting and prolonging the life of outdoor athletic areas and equipment.

While a large majority of the products on athletic fields are designed to withstand the harsh winter temperatures, there are steps that should be taken to further protect some items.

The playing field itself is one of the most important for outdoor sports venues. Any groundskeeper or coach realizes the need for a field to be kept in optimal condition whether during peak season or any other time. The additional maintenance and investment will pay off.

Headquarted in Mississauga, we were once again enlisted by our partners at the Dufferin Peel Catholic District School Board for some recent upgrades to one of their schools. Fresh off the completion of the installation of new telescopic bleachers for Father Michael Goetz Secondary School, the board reached out to us to complete another project within their 148-member school board.

Much the same way many of these projects come to fruition, the board determined that the time had come to replace the outdated and unsafe wooden retractable bleachers at Notre Dame Secondary School in Brampton.

Serving approximately 1,500 students across the Heart Lake region in Brampton and the communities of Caledon, Orangeville, Bolton, and Georgetown, the school has been in operation at its current location since 1988.

In recent years there has been an upswing in money spent on high school athletics programs as well as on training facilities. While in the past, sports as well as arts programs in schools were typically the departments to have budgets cut. However, in some areas, this is no longer necessarily the case.

Athletic directors have worked diligently to fight for the attention and recognition that sports departments are now getting in some locations. Why? The coaches and directors are adamant that athletic programs make a significant impact on the educational development of youth. In sports, you must teach and encourage sportsmanship, teamwork, perseverance, fair play and self-care and these are the exact qualities and values that help youth understand the basics of being a good leader and understanding the importance of being cooperative with others. Athletics require scheduled practice times that are focused on specific goals within that practice time. For students who may be struggling academically, sports could be their outlet. Sports bring people together, even if it’s strictly from a conversation aspect.

Administering Roman Catholic schools scattered throughout the western portion of eastern Ontario, the Algonquin Lakeshore Catholic District School Board is comprised of over 30 elementary schools and 11 secondary schools in the region.

As part of their equitable and inclusive education standards, the schools residing within the board are built on the foundations of discipleship, scholarship, and stewardship. As such, a number of the schools are equipped with specialized rooms that allow for a quiet or safe place for students who sometimes thrive by being temporarily removed from the often noisy and busy environments characteristic of the classroom.