Community raises $1 million for indoor turf facility

The City of Thunder Bay accepted a $1 million cheque on Monday from Let’s All Play, a community-led non-profit that has been working to raise money for the new indoor turf facility, the Tbaytel Multiplex.

Let’s All Play’s President Michael Veneziale, who is also the President of Soccer Northwest, says he has been lobbying for a new indoor sports facility at City Hall for over a decade, since even before the collapse of the Sports Dome in 2016.

“The amount of phone calls, conversations, and emails that I had on a daily basis is what pushed this forward,” he says.

The $36 million city-funded facility was finally greenlit last year, and should be completed by late 2026.

Veneziale is most looking forward to the day when the community can actually enter the build and see the kids playing.

“I think that’s when we’re going to tell everybody or show everybody that that’s why it’s worthwhile,” he adds.

The $1 million fundraiser is itself a partnership with the city, as it includes a $500,000 contribution from the Thunder Bay Community Economic Development Commission’s CEDC Tourism Development Fund.

Mayor Ken Boshcoff, who has personally contributed to the fundraising efforts, says the community’s donations are proof of their interest in the facility.

“A community has to have a gathering spot that is accessible to everybody by every means possible,” he says of his support for the campaign.

The mayor adds that construction of the turf facility has already sent a signal to sporting organizations in the city, which “are now knowing that they can grow their organizations and they can inspire people by saying ‘look what we have here, and look what’s going to happen not only for your kids, but for your grandparents’ — everybody’s going to be able to use this facility.”

As President of Soccer Northwest, Veneziale says his soccer groups will have nowhere to play this winter without the indoor turf facility, so he is hoping for the best when it comes to the facility’s construction.

“I’m just grateful we are where we are today,” says Veneziale, “My only regret is that we weren’t able to do it sooner.”

Veneziale plans to continue raising money for the facility.

“We’re not stopping. The idea is to fundraise as much as possible for this to make it as affordable to everyone as we possibly can.”