The Satellites Gymnastics Club is in talks with the city of Owen Sound to take over the Coliseum.
Councillor Jim McManaman — the Chair of the city’s Recreation and Parks Advisory committee – says the Satellites were the only group to step forward with a plan for the Coliseum.
The city had set an April 4th deadline for proposals.
If none had been received, the facility’s fate would have been sealed and the city would have committed to demolishing it once the Regional Rec Centre is finished and opened to the public.
But McManaman says the Satellites’ proposal doesn’t necessarily mean the Coliseum will be saved.
McManaman says discussions have raised a number of questions which will lead to more talks moving forward.
He could not give a timeline for the process that will lead to a decision by council.
The gymnastics club has more than 250 active members and currently occupies space in the city’s industrial park.
But the club members are constricted by the space, notably a low ceiling which doesn’t allow the gymnasts to be able to train to the best of their capabilities.
A number of proposals were suggested for alternate uses for the Coliseum, most of them sports-related, but council was open to any and all options as long as they were accompanied by a credible business plan.
The city has said it does not intend to be responsible for the operation of the Coliseum going forward, and any group hoping to take it over must propose to do so for the long term.
