Although outdoor tennis clubs/courts were allowed to open in Step 1 and have been open since back in May, the Province's 3-Step Reopening Roadmap does not allow for indoor sports and recreational fitness to reopen until Step 3. Premier Ford announced last Friday that Ontario will finally enter step 3 on Friday, July 16.

Unfortunately this reopening news comes much TOO LATE. By July 16th, two and a half months of our 5 month summer season will have been lost. Most members who join for the summer do so in order to play intercounty, or to take lessons or participate in summer camps. More than 50% of the court time in past summers was used for lessons. The dome's closure, and uncertainty about when it would reopen, resulted in all our coaches finding alternative/outdoor venues where they could coach. Many of our summer and annual members also joined outdoor clubs, rather than wait in hopes of Tam reopening. So, with no camps or leagues or lessons, and two and a half months of summer play already lost, summer membership numbers and court usage will undoubtably be much too small to cover base operating costs (lighting, air conditioning, etc.), much less the additional staffing and cleaning costs to comply with all the necessary safety protocols. Consequently, the Tam Heather Board of Directors has made the difficult decision to stay closed for the remainder of the summer and concentrate on being ready for a fall reopening.

We hope you understand and agree with this decision and we look forward to seeing you again on the courts in the Fall.

As a result of this decision, Annual members are therefore entitled to a credit/refund of the summer portion of their memberships. The office is currently calculating the refunds and will be contacting all Annual members in the next few weeks to find out what you would like to do with your credit.

Hello Everyone,

Toronto Parks, Forestry, and Recreation (PFR) has an on-line Public Consultation meeting scheduled for Thursday July 15. See the details below and at the City website (available via the Curling Strategy link below). PFR is also doing a survey. This meeting and survey are open to anyone. Take advantage of this opportunity to hear about the City's evaluations and plans for Curling and provide your input.

Cheers,
Doug

Virtual Public Meeting

• July 15, 2021
• 6:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m.

Join the meeting online (Opens in new window) with password Curl23

by calling 1-416-915-6530 and using Event number/Access Code 177 533 8229

A virtual public meeting will be held to introduce the Curling Strategy to the public, share work to date, introduce and gather feedback on draft principles for shared use or arena conversion, answer questions of clarification and share next steps.

Public Survey (July 9 to 25, 2021)

A public online survey has been posted and is available by clicking on the Curling Strategy Survey link below. The survey introduces the City's Curling Strategy and ongoing work to the public and is intended to gather feedback on the draft principles for arena conversion or shared use (developed through stakeholder engagement), and preferences between the two options.

Curling Strategy Survey

I hate to say I told you so, but I distinctly remember saying that "We haven't won any of the prizes yet, so we're way overdue." And at least one person listened and agreed. Stephen Broadley from Tam Heather was the winner of the 4th CurlON 50-50 lottery draw and pocketed a cool $4,445. Here is a link to the results from the CurlOn website http://www.curl-on.ca/5050-winners/

The next draw will run over the summer from June 15th - August 31st with several prizes during the summer.So, don't miss out on your chance at this jackpot. And buy your tickets early in order that you not miss out on those preliminary prize draws leading up to the grand prize draw, all while continuing to support youth curling.

Here's that link to the Tam specific sales site.

Tam Heather SALES LINK: https://curlonraffle.5050central.com/?olc=TAM

Thanks to everyone who has already purchased and GOOD LUCK.

Cheers,
Doug

All the levels of government were represented this morning at a virtual meeting to announce "... joint funding to support the rehabilitation of the Tam Heather Curling and Tennis Club in Toronto."

"The Government of Canada is investing over $1 million in this project through the Community, Culture and Recreation Infrastructure Stream of the Investing in Canada plan. The Government of Ontario is providing more than $900,000, while the City of Toronto is contributing more than $700,000 toward this project.

Project work will include the replacement of various building systems including both HVAC and life safety systems, improvements to various interior finishes, as well as a number of accessibility upgrades including a refurbished accessible change room in the basement level and an accessible access route from the tennis bubble to the building. These improvements will make the Tam Heather Curling Club more energy efficient and accessible while providing an opportunity for expanding community recreational programming in improved spaces."

Work is already underway on an elevator connecting the upper lounge, the arena and the lower lounge.

The Tam Heather club is available for private rentals. Both the upper and lower lounges may be booked for special events such as weddings, anniversaries, birthdays, meetings or dances.

The first step in becoming a Member is to sign up for an account. 

Thinking of trying the sport of curling?

Curling is a unique sport that requires both skill and strategy. It is often referred to as chess on ice. It is a lifelong sport that can be learned at any age. Whether playing in a fun league or in a competitive ladder the emphasis is always on sportsmanship and fair play. Being a social sport by nature, it is not uncommon for teams to socialize off the ice where lasting friendships are often made.