Vernon’s newest facility got quite the welcoming.
Kal Tire Place North arena officially opened with a raft of events billed as Community Working For The Weekend, a tribute to Canadian rock icons Loverboy, who helped christen the facility by sharing the billing with Platinum Blond at a sold-out concert in the original Kal Tire Place arena Saturday.
“It was excellent, very good, the vibe was electric,” said Dean Francks of concert hosts CFI Productions, about the event with the 80s super groups. “It was an awesome show, very well received.”
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The weekend kicked off Friday with the Vernon Vipers’ B.C. Hockey League regular season home opener at Kal Tire Place, and the new facility was front-and-centre in the spotlight Sunday.
An outdoor market drew about 50 vendors, complete with kids’ play area, while inside, shinny hockey and public skating were held in the morning, and user groups ringette, speed skating and figure skating held free demonstrations of their events.
People could also tour the new arena.
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“The new facility is incredible,” said Francks, whose company hosted a shinny hockey game featuring some former NHLers playing with members of Loverboy’s road crew. “The weather held off, the market was good, and the user groups were in throughout the day.”
Over at Kal Tire Place, the stage and sound system from Saturday’s concert was left behind so six local bands could provide free live music Sunday.
roger@vernonmorningstar.com
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