An aging scoreboard at the Port McNeill Chilton Regional Arena will be getting a facelift.
At their regular meeting March 16, town council agreed to provide financial support to upgrade the scoreboard.
In a letter to council, Chilton Arena Manager Gerry Little, said the 20-plus-year-old scoreboard has a damaged module. Little said repairing the old scoreboard would not be worth the $2,000 cost, given its outdated technology.
Buying a scoreboard would make more sense, said Little.
The advantages include LED lighting technology, 97 per cent savings in electrical costs, less ice-plant run time, re-use of a $2,500 controller, and the replacement would fall under the Gas Tax funding requirements.
It is estimated the new scoreboard would save about $970 in hydro each year. Council approved contributing a third of the cost of the new scoreboard which is about $2,000.
The rest of the cost will be covered through Gas Tax funding, part of the New Building Canada Plan which provides long-term funding for Canadian municipalities to help them build and revitalize their local public infrastructure.
“Our arena is one of our most unique buildings in this community in terms of hosting larger scale events and I’m sure having a cutting-edge scoreboard will allow for even greater use,” said Councillor Jay Dixon.
The cost of the new LED scoreboard is $6,251 and will come with a five-year warranty.