When Noah Welch and his partners opened The Dome just south of Red Deer in the final months of 2019 they knew the risk they were taking was going to ensure some rough days ahead. The 107,000 square foot playing surface has room for several sport organizations to use, at the same time. In fact that type of use would be key to the survival and the success of their business plan. The Dome got off to a great start.
Fortunately The Dome was able to make great inroads with Central Alberta athletes and sport organizations. Several groups were regular visitors and clients. On any given evening, baseball, softball, soccer, and lacrosse players might all be working out, sometimes at the same time!
Then, COVID. Only four months after they turned the lights on, COVID-19 lockdown restriction forced them to “temporarily” shut down. As far as the province is concerned The Dome is considered an indoor gym and it has had to abide by the same rules as much smaller facilities. As an air-supported building, fresh outdoor air is constantly circulating into The Dome to hold the roof up. An engineering study has concluded the facility could actually be considered “out-door” in terms of air quality. Regardless until Monday, the lights were out. Now in Stage 1 of Alberta’s reopening plan, small groups of up to 10 are allowed to use the massive facility. It’s not much, but it’s a start and the owners of The Dome are very happy. Still Noah Welch says there’s a long way to go. The Dome was built to serve hundreds of athletes a day and that won’t be possible until lockdown measures are lifted further and young athletes are allowed to train together and share this structure with other teams.
Here’s Noah Welch with his first hand account of how COVID lockdown measures have threatened to deflate The Dome.
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