River Grove Community Centre is officially back in action

Mayor Hazel McCallion won’t be in office when Meadowvale Community Centre, the last of the city’s recreational facilities to be updated, reopens in summer 2016.

So it was that much more important for McCallion to attend Saturday’s (Aug. 16) official opening of Mississauga’s penultimate recreational site to undergo a major overhaul: River Grove Community Centre.

Standing in the once leaking lobby that’s now drip-free, airy and suffused in natural light, McCallion thanked residents for their patience during the $10.7-million redevelopment, which saw the closure of the building from Canada Day 2013 to July 2 of this year. Throwing out a bouquet of compliments toward those involved in the project – City staff as well as contractor Aquicon Construction and MacLennan Jaunkalns Miller Architects – McCallion impressed upon attendees the significance of caring for the building, which first opened in 1996, for generations to come.

“Treat this with tender love and care – it’s your facility,” she said. “Keep it tidy, keep it clean and it can remain that way.” In addition to the reworked lobby space, the building has a number of updates such as new change rooms, a fitness room that is double the size, an array of windows that look out to the forest behind the indoor pool – even an updated kitchen for the facility’s culinary program.