Community invited to take 1st look at vision for transformed Eastlink Centre next week

Thinh Nguyen · CBC News

· Posted: Jun 16, 2025 12:26 PM EDT | Last Updated: June 16

People connected P.E.I. volition get a peek adjacent week astatine projected changes to Charlottetown's Eastlink Centre that the wide manager hopes volition let the centre to yet publication "that adjacent level of amusement that we deliberation the Island deserves." 

The centre, which is much than 3 decades aged now, is hosting an unfastened location connected June 26 to showcase plan concepts for projected renovations to marque it into a modern, multi-use venue. The upgrades are expected to instrumentality spot implicit a three-year period.

General manager John Abbott said the centre, formerly known arsenic the Charlottetown Civic Centre and primitively built successful 1990 to enactment the 1991 Canada Games, is opening to amusement its age.

If the centre wants to stay competitory and pull top-tier events, helium said, it needs much than conscionable a spruce up.

"It's important to us… to get into that adjacent level of amusement that we deliberation that the Island deserves, that the metropolis deserves," Abbott told CBC's Island Morning.

Centre can't big immoderate large events

The existent arena has astir 3,700 seats, but large events specified arsenic the Brier necessitate astatine slightest 5,000. Abbott said this spread successful capableness limits the centre's eligibility to big high-profile competitions.

He besides noted that portion astir modern arenas usage a top-loading plan to heighten safety, with spectators entering from the apical concourse, the Eastlink Centre uses a bottom-loading plan wherever radical participate from the bottommost of the arena.

"We request to support our artists," helium said. "These days, the artists privation to marque definite that they're not accessible to the fans, and close present they are."

$3 cardinal successful backing truthful far

Back successful March, Charlottetown metropolis assembly approved superior and operating budgets for 2025-26, including astir $3 cardinal earmarked for upgrades to the Eastlink Centre.

Part of this money has fto the centre enactment with architecture steadfast Coles Associates to make plan and engineering plans, which volition beryllium unveiled astatine the unfastened house.

The connection includes a second-floor concourse, which improves information and could besides accommodate amenities similar a walking track, caller concession stands and upstairs washrooms.

Abbott said these ideas were developed aft a batch of consultation with Coles Associates, idiosyncratic groups and cardinal stakeholders. Now, the Eastlink Centre is acceptable to contiguous the imaginativeness to the nationalist and invitation feedback.

A afloat database of projected features is disposable connected the centre's website.

'It's a immense project'

Abbott said each the caller structures volition beryllium built extracurricular the existing centre to minimize disruption to the facility's existent operations.

Once that signifier is complete, the walls volition beryllium removed and the recently constructed elements volition beryllium moved inside. He said passim the three-year process, tenants volition not beryllium required to determination out.

"It is simply a immense project, nary question," helium said.

A akin renovation was considered successful 2003 and estimated to outgo astir $7 million, but the task was not pursued astatine the time, Abbott said. Many elements of that earlier connection person been incorporated into the existent plan.

While an archetypal outgo estimation of $38 cardinal was presented to the city, Abbott said the last terms tag volition go clearer successful the coming months.

"We'll get into hard numbers successful the adjacent fewer months, erstwhile we get a small much finalized connected our details and what we request to spot what the building's going to look like."