Hounds offer to pay for new Gardens scoreboard

Starting at this year's season opener, Hounds fans have snarled that the scoreboard's north panel doesn't work

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1 / 1 North side of the existing scoreboard no longer works. Brad Coccimiglio/Sootoday

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All you Greyhound fans who sit on the north side of GFL Memorial Gardens and have been forced to stare recently at a blank scoreboard, rejoice!

On Monday, City Council is expected to approve an arrangement under which Soo Greyhounds will pick up the upfront costs of a brand-new, half-million-dollar videoboard.

The reliability of the existing scoreboard/clock has been a concern with the north panel unusable since the Hounds home opener on Sept. 20.

"The failure of the current scoreboard drew a number of complaints from fans last weekend and the lack of any redundancy would be an issue if we experience any further failures," says Brent Lamming, the city's director of community services.

The Hounds stepped forward amid uncertainty over whether a costly new scoreboard could be accommodated in the city's 2020 capital budget.

The first step in the replacement process will be to determine the load capacity of the Gardens roof, taking into account snow load and other weight requirements for rigging, lighting and other event needs.

Under the proposed deal, with Hounds will pay for a structural analysis that will be used to determine specifications for the new scoreboard design.

"The new videoboard is anticipated to be of a similar size to the existing clock, however, it will have a full videoboard on each side, versus the smaller screens currently in place located on each side," Lamming says.

The new scoreboard is expected to have increased capacity for replays, advertising opportunities and sound.

It will be paid for through advertising, with the city forgoing its usual 10 percent piece of the ad action for the next decade.

Special events will be allowed to use the videoboard for $500 plus the cost of a technician if one is needed.

Consideration is also being given to buying a low-tech auxiliary clock for user groups, similar to those used in other arenas to support regular programming.

Monday's City Council meeting will be livestreamed on SooToday starting at 4:30 p.m.