Save the date, the City of Cranbrook has scheduled a community celebration and grand reopening for the Memorial Arena on Saturday, April 27.

The city is planning a formal event to recognize the contributions of more than 20 dedicated contractors and commercial businesses that supported the massive effort to save the Memorial Arena and have it reopened for the public and for users.

The event will be free and open to the public from 3 to 10 p.m. featuring food trucks, a beer garden, and live music. Although the city is welcoming the public, there is a maximum capacity of 1,000 people for safety and security.

“Select user groups most directly impacted by the Memorial Arena closure have already been given early access to the facility as of this past weekend,” said Trevor Thors, Director of Recreation and Culture. “This event is meant to be a formal recognition of the contractors and businesses for their hard work to make the Memorial Arena safe for everyone, as well as to recognize the patience of the public and user groups while the major repairs were made.”

Active construction has been ongoing to repair and replace the Memorial Arena’s Glulam beams since November 2023. The arena is set to be fully reopened to the public after the grand reopening celebration.

The repairs made to the Memorial Arena were budgeted at $3-million and included a generous $500,000 contribution from the Regional District of East Kootenay (RDEK). The City of Cranbrook gratefully acknowledges the financial contributions of the Canada Community Building Fund (former Gas Tax Fund) toward this important infrastructure project.

Lead image: Memorial Arena scaffolding while work was underway. New Dawn Development photo.

City of Cranbrook

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