TES-002 - Ice Time Allocation and Management Policy_2021
ICE TIME ALLOCATION AND
MANAGEMENT POLICY
City of Saint John
Growth and Community Services
Updated: June 29, 2021
City of Saint John Ice Time Allocation and Management Policy
Contents
1. Authority ................................................................................................................................. 3
2. Responsibility ......................................................................................................................... 3
3. Guiding Principles .................................................................................................................. 3
4. Annual Review ....................................................................................................................... 3
5. Operational ............................................................................................................................. 3
6. Rights Reserved ...................................................................................................................... 4
7. Client Priority ......................................................................................................................... 4
8. Gender Equity ......................................................................................................................... 5
9. Residency Requirement .......................................................................................................... 5
10. Standard of Play...................................................................................................................... 6
11. Tournaments and Special Events ............................................................................................ 7
12. User Cancellations .................................................................................................................. 8
13. City Cancellations................................................................................................................... 8
14. Breach of Contract .................................................................................................................. 8
15. Exclusivity .............................................................................................................................. 8
16. Diversity of New Users or Programs ...................................................................................... 9
17. Opening Arenas Outside of Standard Hours of Operation ..................................................... 9
18. Arena User Conduct and Responsibilities .............................................................................. 9
19. General Administration ........................................................................................................ 10
20. Administration of Fees ......................................................................................................... 10
21. Deadlines for Ice Time Requests and Confirmation ............................................................. 10
22. Payment Terms ..................................................................................................................... 11
23. Group Representation ........................................................................................................... 11
24. Indemnification and Insurance Requirements ...................................................................... 11
25. Arena Code of Conduct ........................................................................................................ 12
26. Arena Additional Fees .......................................................................................................... 13
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CITY OF SAINT JOHN
ICE TIME ALLOCATION AND MANAGEMENT POLICY
1. Authority
It shall be the policy of the City of Saint John to confer upon Growth and Community Services as the
authority and responsibility for implementation of the policies as outlined herein.
2. Responsibility
It shall be the policy of the City of Saint John to manage, allocate, and distribute ice times for City-owned
and operated arenas. Allocation of ice time shall reflect and take account of the population, registration,
utilization, gender, and participation patterns of the community, in addition to applying provincial or federal
directives as may be required.
3. Guiding Principles
It shall be the policy of the City of Saint John that the following principles are considered and referenced
in the development and updating of the Ice Allocation and Management Policy.
Optimize Usage of Ice: The Ice Allocation and Management Policy shall ensure the effective
management of total available ice time within the jurisdiction of the City of Saint John.
Access and Equality: The Policy shall ensure fair and equitable access to ice in terms of allocation, as
well as in the application of fees and charges.
Youth Sport Development: Children and youth are a priority target and special consideration is given to
accommodating children and youth activities and sport development.
Diversity: The Policy shall provide options for a wide array of users and programs, current and emerging.
Partnership: The Policy shall recognize the importance of partnerships with minor sport and community
associations in the delivery of rink-based activities.
Financial Sustainability: The Policy shall provide a transparent framework for fiscally responsible ice
facility operations.
4. Annual Review
It shall be the policy of the City of Saint John that an annual review and update of the Ice Allocation and
Management Policy be conducted by the Director and staff of Growth and Community Planning Services
for City of Saint John.
5. Operational
It shall be the policy of the City of Saint John to update or amend any portion of this policy, as well as
operational and managerial documents as may be required to ensure policy principles are being met.
Changes or amendments made to this policy will be fairly applied.
City of Saint John Ice Time Allocation and Management Policy
6. Rights Reserved
It shall be the policy of the City of Saint John to distribute ice time in an open and fair manner that best
reflect the needs of the community while reserving the right to assign and reassign ice as may be required.
7. Client Priority
It shall be the policy of the City of Saint John to allocate ice according to the following priorities. Seasonal
ice is considered October-March yearly.
All ice times allocated to groups 1 through 7 are to be used for the stated priority group for recreation,
developmental, and competitive use. The City of Saint John recognizes that youth associations may opt to
have paid instructors at ice times for enhanced skill development. These instructional opportunities are not
to be for profit and any additional fees charged to participants are only to cover ice time, equipment, and a
reasonable charge for instruction. The City of Saint John reserves the right to investigate such instruction
offerings to ensure they comply with this policy.
1. City of Saint John programs and special events.
Programs provided at low or no cost for recreational skating opportunities and are made
available by the City of Saint John Parks and Recreation department.
2. Youth Tournament play (refer to Section 13).
3. Youth Recreational Seasonal Requests
Associations that offer service for the majority of participants are 18 years or younger, do not regulate
membership, are non-profit, are guided by constitutions and by-laws, have auditable financial
statements, are affiliated with a sport governing body, have an elected board of directors, and provide
consistent programming of at least 20 weeks annually.
4. Youth General Seasonal Requests
Associations that offer service for the majority of participants are 18 years or younger that do not fit
into the “Youth Recreational” category. Organizations in this category include those that provide
enhanced skill development training.
Category A: Not-for-Profit – enhance skill development, competitive in nature, and are
associated with a provincial sport governing body. New Brunswick Department of
Education and School Districts fall within this category.
Category B: For-Profit – enhance skill development, competitive in nature, and associated
with an independent entity.
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City of Saint John Ice Time Allocation and Management Policy
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6. AdultAssociations, Organizations,and GroupsSeasonal Requests
Purpose of the Association, Organization, or Group is to involve individuals in recreation and
sport.
Membership in the group will be made up predominately of Saint John residents. Membership
lists from the previous year will be used to determine priority.
7. Youth Recreational/General, School, and Adult requests that are less than 15 hours for the season.
8. Commercial and Occasional Users
For-profit organizations or individuals that use ice time with the intent of generating positive
net income.
8. Gender Equity
Equitable access to recreation facilities is fundamental to the wellbeing of all citizens. The City of Saint
John is committed to achieving access and equity in allocation of public recreational spaces. Scheduling
to offer reasonable and fair opportunity to use facilities in a proportionate and equitable manner will be
achieved by taking into consideration the following:
Equitable distribution of Prime versus less desirable time slots while following identified
client priority.
Addressing existing inequities with respect to those who identify as women or girls.
Special consideration will be given to reduce significant barriers to increase inclusion for all
genders, but specifically focusing on those who identify as women or girls (start times,
facility environment, facility location, program needs, and facility amenities).
9. Residency Requirement
The City of Saint John recognizes the tax-based contributions provided by its residents toward the
development (capital) and operation of recreational facilities. The City of Saint John also recognizes that
residents will always receive priority over non-residents. Therefore, it shall be the policy of the City of
Saint John to allocate ice time based on resident rate, with the organizations/teams with higher residency
rates taking priority. The City will accommodate the regular use of ice by non-residents after resident
demand is satisfied and under special circumstances such as reciprocal agreements.
It shall be the policy of the City of Saint John that all applicant groups will submit to Growth and
Community Services membership lists (current year), including participants’ telephone numbers and
addresses for review by November 30. If residency information is never submitted, in addition to not being
eligible for priority bookings the following year, it will be assumed that 100% of the applicant group is
non-resident. All information received will solely be used for the purposes of address verification and will
1
“Adult” means a person over the age of 19 years and includes sports or activities where the majority of participants
are greater than 19 years of age.
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City of Saint John Ice Time Allocation and Management Policy
not be sold or shared with any third parties. Once residency is confirmed, all documents will be shredded.
It is illegal for any person to falsely represent themselves. Any documents submitted under false pretenses,
forged, or misrepresented (in whole or part) will be considered void.
Associations, leagues, and teams that book ice with the City of Saint John must allow their participants at
the point of registration the opportunity to either accept or deny the sharing of their personal information
with the City of Saint John for resident verification purposes. In order for associations, leagues, and teams
to share roster information, all registrants must have informed consent. Association, league, and team
failure to allow this option at registration are asserting that all participants are non-residents.
10. Standard of Play
It shall be the policy of the City of Saint John to maintain a standard of play time for various sports in
determination of minimum benchmarks for allocation requirements. The number of weekly hours allocated
to any user group will be based on justified need, with youth recreational programs receiving the largest
block of ice time but not exceeding a start time of 9pm at all three City of Saint John arenas on a daily basis
to allow adult user groups reasonable ice time hours weekly.
Not including new and emerging groups, no organization or team will exceed the allotted number of hours
from the previous season without the expressed need documented. Allotment of hours are not guaranteed
from year to year and, dependent on season requests, groups may lose hours or be relocated to different
times and/or arenas.
The standard of play is as follows:
9®´³§ 4¤ ¬ )¢¤ 3¯®±³² Ȩ(®¢ª¤¸ȝ2¨¦¤³³¤ȝ3«¤£¦¤Ǿ ¤³¢ȁȩ
Age GroupNon-Competitive Competitive
1 Team = 15 players = Hrs./Wk. 1 Team = 17 players = Hrs./Wk.
Under 6 years 1Team = 1 hour 1 Team =1 hour
8 years & under 1Team = 1 hour 1 Team =1 hour
10 years & under 1 Team =1 hour1 Team =1 hour
13 years & under 1Team = 1 hour 1 Team =1 hour
15 years & under 1 Team = 1 hour 1 Team =2 hours
18 years & under 1 Team = 1.5hours1 Team = 2.5 hours
3ª ³¨¦ 0±®¦± ¬ &®±¬´«
Level MinimumParticipants = Hours/Week
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City of Saint John Ice Time Allocation and Management Policy
Instructional Learn to Skate Participants/55 =1 hour
Instructional Figure Skating Participants/24 = 2 hours
Competitive Figure Skating Participants/15 = 2.5 hours
Competitive Synchronized Skating Participants/24 =1.5 hours
Instructional Power Skating Participants/40 = 1 hour
Competitive Speed Skating Participants/15 = 1 hour
!£´«³ )¢¤ 3¯®±³² 0±®¦± ¬²
Level 1 Team =12 Players or 12 Participants =
Hours/Week
Adult Ice Sports (Various Sports) 1 Team = 1 hour
It shall be the policy of the City of Saint John to make reasonable efforts to meet the minimum number of
hours; however, the City assumes no obligation to meet the standards. Where possible, additional needs
from applicant groups will be satisfied pending ice availability and overall demand. Efforts will be made
to maintain consistency in ice times for groups from the previous season. Mass rearrangements of ice based
on a single request may not occur.
City of Saint John Prime and Non-Prime Ice Hours
Prime Time Early Morning Pre-Prime Post-Prime
Weekdays 4pm to 10pmprior to 8am 8am-4pm 10pm-12 midnight
Weekend and 7am to 10pm n/a n/a 10pm-12 midnight
Holidays
11. Tournaments and Special Events
It shall be the policy of the City of Saint John to achieve a balance between recreational and special events
use during the regular ice season; therefore, a maximum of 2 weekend tournaments or special events per
month will be scheduled between October and March inclusive. Tournaments shall not be placed on back-
to-back weekends and best efforts will be made not to monopolize all arenas during the tournaments.
Tournaments are not permitted to start any earlier than 7:30am to allow staff time to prepare the arena.
Priority will be given to youth recreational/developmental tournaments. For-profit tournament requests will
be reviewed by staff and subject to approval based on need and displacement considerations of weekly ice
users.
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City of Saint John Ice Time Allocation and Management Policy
Notwithstanding, additional weekend events may be considered if an applicant group can demonstrate to
the satisfaction of the Director of Growth and Community Planning Services the written agreement of user
groups affected by a proposed event.
12. User Cancellations
It shall be the policy of the City of Saint John to effectively manage ice booking with the objective of
minimizing administrative, revenue, and operational impacts. Therefore, cancellations will not be permitted
after the last Friday in September for any seasonal booked ice times (including tournaments). Requests to
cancel every second week and sporadic ice times throughout the season will not be accepted. Cancellation
deadline for spring ice: March 18. Cancellation deadline for summer ice: August 18.
User groups are not permitted to exchange or give scheduled ice times to other groups. Groups looking to
exchange ice times are required to notify the City of the change and City staff will make the invoice changes.
13. City Cancellations
It shall be the policy of the City of Saint John to reserve the right to postpone or reschedule any permitted
ice time booking due to unscheduled circumstances, such as an emergency shutdown or facility
maintenance or repair. The City shall make all reasonable efforts to provide affected groups with
alternative ice times; if bookings cannot be coordinated, the affected user shall receive a full refund. The
City of Saint John reserves the right to cancel the offering of summer ice if sufficient interest is not shown
to justify operational costs by the application deadline.
It shall be the policy of the City of Saint John to not cancel or postpone commercially advertised
instructional programs and leisure skate times, with the exception of the following:
Significant and high-profile special events as determined by Common Council
Low registration in instructional programs
Unscheduled emergency shut-down situations
14. Breach of Contract
It shall be the policy of the City of Saint John to reserve the right to cancel a contract or portion of a contract
without notice where in the opinion of the Director of Growth and Community Planning Services the
facilities are not being used for the contracted purpose or the user is violating the Arena Code of Conduct.
The contract holder affected will receive a full refund/credit for unused bookings.
15. Exclusivity
It shall be the policy of the City of Saint John to retain the right to exclusively offer instructional programs
and leisure skate services at its arenas. Instructional programs and ice services proposed by any applicant
are subject to review and approval by Growth and Community Services. Duplication of programs and
services may be restricted.
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City of Saint John Ice Time Allocation and Management Policy
16. Diversity of New Users or Programs
It shall be the policy of the City of Saint John to reasonably accommodate new users or programs to provide
for unmet or emerging community needs while also meeting other criteria outlined in this policy.
It shall be the policy of the City of Saint John to recognize new organizations and/or emerging under-
represented recreation offering/user groups and allocate ice time to enable these groups to establish their
programs and services. The City of Saint John values diversity and recognizes the value to the community
in supporting such groups and opportunities. The City will use unallocated ice first to meet the needs of a
new applicant but reserves the right to reasonably reallocate hours from existing users, if warranted for a
period not exceeding one year.
17. Opening Arenas Outside of Standard Hours of Operation
It shall be the policy of the City of Saint John to consider opening arenas outside of standard hours of
operation and charge fees that cover all hourly rates as well as full operational costs, pending the availability
of staff.
18. Arena User Conduct and Responsibilities
It shall be the policy of the City of Saint John to require all applicant groups to agree to abide by the Arena
Code of Conduct as well as all additional rules and regulations that may be attached to a rental agreement
or posted within the arena being rented. In the case of a conflict between rules or regulations, the more
stringent rules shall apply.
It shall be the policy of the City of Saint John to require that all users vacate the dressing rooms within 30
minutes of the conclusion of their rental period.
It shall be the policy of the City of Saint John to authorize the Arena Manager or designate supervisor as
the responsible party for the assignment of dressing rooms. Dressing Room keys will only be issued to
managers or coaches.
It shall be the policy of the City of Saint John to not accept responsibility for any lost, stolen, or misplaced
personal items or equipment of users or applicant groups including but not limited to, items left unattended
in the locker rooms or main arena.
It shall be the policy of the City of Saint John that all applicant groups and users assume full and exclusive
responsibility for all damages or losses to property, fixtures, and equipment belonging to the City if caused
by the applicant group or its respective members, staff, agents, or guests participating in or observing events
during the term covered by the rental agreement. The applicant group will notify the Arena Manager or
designate immediately of any vandalism, damages or losses to City property, fixtures, and equipment.
It shall be the policy of the City of Saint John that all applicant groups and users are prohibited from bringing
alcoholic beverages into City arenas.
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City of Saint John Ice Time Allocation and Management Policy
It shall be the policy of the City of Saint John that all application groups and users uphold the provincial
legislation regarding the Smoke Free Places Act, which prohibits smoking/vaping in all enclosed public
places.
It shall be the policy of the City of Saint John to reserve the right to eject any person and/or the organization
from the facility for noncompliance at the sole and absolute discretion of the City’s Arena Manager or
designate supervisor in charge.
19. General Administration
It shall be the policy of the City of Saint John to require all applicant groups and users to submit requests
for booking and cancellations on City-approved application forms. The City of Saint John reserves the
right to reject applications and requests from clients who submit forms which are incomplete, contain
falsified information, or are submitted after published deadlines.
20. Administration of Fees
It shall be the policy of the City of Saint John to assign upon the Director of the Growth and Community
Planning Services the authority and responsibility for:
a) Establishing procedures and guidelines for managing rental agreements and fees within the
framework of this policy.
b) Maintaining liaison with other Government agencies, including the Greater Saint John Regional
Facilities Commission, the Lord Beaverbrook Rink, and other user groups and organizations
concerned with rental agreements and fees for arenas within Greater Saint John.
c) Implementing a fee policy that is consistent with the market value and pursuing cost recovery of
the arena rental service being offered within Greater Saint John.
d) Implementing the rental agreement and fee policy and procedures, including properly collecting
fees.
21. Deadlines for Ice Time Requests and Confirmation
When requesting and allocating ice time requests, the following time frames are mandatory:
Season Dates Application Due Date Contract Emailed Signed Contract
Returned
strdst
Spring Apr 1 to Apr 30 1 Friday in February 3Friday in February 1 Friday in March
nd
Summer Sept 1 to Early Last Friday in June 2 Friday in June Last Friday in June
Oct
ndstrdnd
Fall/Winter 2 Friday in Oct 1 Friday in August 3Friday in August 2 Friday in
to March 31 September
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City of Saint John Ice Time Allocation and Management Policy
Contracts that are not signed and returned by the specified date will be considered null and void and the
associated ice time will go back for sale. Contract cancellations will be subject to cancellation
administration charges (see section 14) after signing date. Arena bookings for each season will not be issued
until all accounts are paid in full from the previous year.
22. Payment Terms
See below chart for seasonal payment terms. Delinquent accounts will be subject to stricter payment
guidelines. Late payments will be subject to additional charges (see attached fees).
In an effort to minimize administrative time, multiple invoices will not be issued to the same account holder.
This generates numerous staff hours to verify multiple invoices for payment, updating and issuing.
Season 50% PaymentFull PaymentPost Dated Cheques
Spring At Time of First Rental Last day in April Not accepted
Summer Second Friday in Second Friday in In total Sept 30
September October
Fall/Winter Last day in November Last day in March Nov 1, Dec 1, Jan 1, Feb 1,
Mar 1,
23. Group Representation
In order for the City of Saint John to effectively serve their customers, all groups are asked to elect no more
than two representatives to serve as liaison between Growth and Community Services and their group. All
communications between the group and Growth and Community Services, at all times, be channelled
through each group’s representatives.
24. Indemnification and Insurance Requirements
The user must, at all times, during which it is allocated ice time in City of Saint John arenas, keep in force
and in effect a Comprehensive General Liability insurance policy. A copy of the insurance certificate must
be presented to the City of Saint John before time of first booking with the following requirements being
met:
a) Minimum limits of two million ($2,000,000)
b) The City of Saint John added as “Additional Insured”
c) A cross liability clause
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City of Saint JohnIceTimeAllocationand ManagementPolicy
d)For organizations/group dealing with youth 18yrsand under,Limit and Conditional Coverage for
Physical and Sexual Abuse is required.
e)The insurers will give thirty (30) days’ notice of cancellation of this policy to the City of Saint
John.
f)If any group does not have the required insurance coverage, it can be purchased through
the City of Saint John’s insurance carrier for a nominal rate. For example a hockey team
can purchase the appropriate coverage for $150.00 per season.
25. Arena Code of Conduct
ARENA CODE OF CONDUCT
In an effort to ensure all activities in City of Saint John arenas are desirable and fulfilling
experiences for all involved, the City of Saint John has an ‘Arena Code of Conduct’ policy.
The City of Saint John also supports the individual ‘Code of Conduct’ policies of organizations
and associations who use City of Saint John facilities.
The City of Saint John is committed to providing an environment in which all individuals are
treated with courtesy and respect. As such, all arena users shall conduct themselves in a manner
consistent with good sportsmanship and behaviour that is appropriate, fair, and mutually
respectful. Harassment and discrimination are never acceptable and will not be tolerated.
If at any time an arena user feels harassed, they should report this concern to a game official, City
staff, league official, or school official.
Please note the following:
1. Any person whose conduct is not conducive to maintaining a positive environment during
the event will be given a verbal warning to improve their behaviour or may be asked to leave,
dependent upon the severity of their behaviour. This action can be taken by a game official,
City staff, league official, or school official. City staff need to be informed whenever a verbal
warning has been issued. Physical abuse violations will result in an immediate dismissal,
with follow-up investigation.
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City of Saint John Ice Time Allocation and Management Policy
2. If the person continues to be disruptive, it is at the discretion of the game official, City
staff, league official, or school official to ask the individual to leave the building, or to
directly contact the Saint John Police Force to escort the person from the facility (any citizen
has the right to call Police if they feel threatened, at any time).
3. Any person or group found to be in violation of the terms of the Ice Allocation Policy
will be subjectto the listed penaltiesin the Arena Code of Conduct Policy.
* If multiple league/team participants are receiving warnings regarding their behaviour, they will
be treated as one and the league/team designate will be contacted. If the behaviours do not improve,
ice time may be reduced/taken away. This will be at the discretion of Growth and Community
Services staff, upon investigation. Examples of unacceptable behaviour include the consumption of
alcohol/drugs,smoking/vaping,and verbal/physical abuse.
26. Arena Additional Fees
Charge Fee
NSF $25
Late payment fee $50 – Team
(payments not paid on time) $200 – League
Non-Compliance $50 per week, to a maximum of
(request for residency information) $200 if they never submit, plus will not be
eligible for priority bookings the following
year.
Delinquent Account
25% of invoice is dueprior to first
booking;
(applied to accounts that were
25% due within first quarter of
delinquent the year previous)
season,
25% due halfway through season,
25% (remainder) due three quarters
of the way through season.
Facility Clean Up$50 first time offense
$100 any recurring offenses
Void Key Deposit Return $100; repeated infractions may result in loss
of key privileges.
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