A new outdoor multi-sport court is coming to Mariners Centre.

It will be 18,000 square feet, and be built next to the outdoor ball hockey rink.

The court will be accessible for basketball, wheelchair tennis and more, the project will cost just shy of $1 million.

The funding is through the three municipal units that own the Mariners Centre, and donations through Canadian Tire’s Jumpstart program.

Darcy DeSutter is the chair of the centre’s fundraising committee and owner of Canadian Tire in Yarmouth, and says it’s a major need for the community,

“It’s close to my heart. Canadian Tire Jumpstart said they’d look into it, and they made that commitment two or three years ago. They stepped up for the community,” said DeSutter.

‘It’s going to be lit at night, a rubberized service as well. It will likely be able to be used nine months out of the year. The timing of this is right to be able to build this court, as the Mariners Centre expansion didn’t include an indoor court,’ added DeSutter.

The proposed design of the new multi-sport court at Mariners Centre (Acadia News)

A construction tender will be issued with summer, with a planned opening for the fall.

Yarmouth Recreation director Frank Grant says this will help kids become more active.

“People can come play basketball, pickleball, kick the soccer ball around, whatever suits them. This is a win-win for us, we’ve had a plan of getting our youth more active, and this will help us achieve that,” said Grant.

Mayor Pam Mood was also thrilled with the announcement.

“This is one of the biggest things that’s happened to us. For Jumpstart to ask if we’re interested, when we’ve been asking for this type of space, it’s amazing. People are looking for amenities, when we recruit healthcare professionals, this is a perfect scenario. These types of things are what we’re after,” said Mayor Mood.

An update was shared on the status of fundraising for the expansion project.

The centres’ fundraising committee says they’re over halfway to their goal of $10 million.

They’re hoping to break ground on the expansion this fall.