West Lorne, Ont. finalizing arena upgrade plans for Kraft Hockeyville winnings

The architect is drawing up the final plans as West Lorne gets set to spend their arena upgrade winnings from Kraft Hockeyville 2023.

In May 2023, the small Elgin County community won the nationwide contest, which gave them the right to host an NHL exhibition game, as well as $250,000 in cash to upgrade the West Lorne Arena.

“Everyone keeps asking what we are doing with the Hockeyville money,” said Bill Denning, West Elgin councillor and member of the Hockeyville committee. “Right now, it’s in a reserve along with some added funds from municipal and private donations. We currently have just around $400,000.”

The newly named Bo Horvat Community Centre fits the needs of the small town for most hockey games, but what they need is renovations to the change rooms, as well as accessibility work.

“The canteen here has not been operational since before the pandemic,” said Denning, claiming that a new Tim Horton’s and other businesses have provided those attending with other options.

“Instead of expanding the footprint, which would be very costly, the decision was made to take the canteen and repurpose it into one of the needs of our community, which is another change room,” said Denning. “We're very confident that we can meet the needs of minor hockey and our skating club without having to expand further out and just be responsible with the Kraft Hockeyville money.”

Bo Horvat signs an autograph for a fan in West Lorne, Ont. on Saturday Aug. 24, 2024. (Brent Lale/CTV News London)

On Saturday, Aug. 24, hometown hockey hero Bo Horvat returned for a celebration in his honour at Miller Park behind the arena.

The Hockey Hall of Fame had displays and the community came together as they officially renamed the arena in honour of Horvat, a New York Islanders forward from nearby Rodney who grew up playing hockey in West Lorne.

“When I first got the call, I couldn't believe that they were considering it, let alone, making that happen,” said Horvat, a former London Knight. “I feel pretty blessed and fortunate and lucky to have this because this is kind of where I fell in love with the game and, it just kind of led me to where I am today.”

He signed autographs for the fans for more than two hours, and caught up with family and community members he doesn’t see as often as he’d like.

The canteen inside the Bo Horvat Community Centre in West Lorne, Ont. is being converted to change rooms with the winnings from Kraft Hockeyville 2023. (Brent Lale/CTV News London)

“When they won Kraft Hockeyville, I was trying to show my support and, and I couldn't be happier that they got it,” said Horvat. “This community deserved it and I'm happy that now that my name gets to be on that arena. It means the world to me.”

Denning said Horvat is a deserving recipient.

“He’s a great role model for our community who continues to just contribute quietly to so many different, worthy organizations,” said Denning.

Council and the Hockeyville committee are now awaiting the architect’s final report to determine how much the project will ultimately cost.

The hope is that it wont’ be too significant.

“Once we know what the cost is going to be, then we can figure out how much we need to raise and set a goal and a timeline to raise that money,” said Denning. “Hopefully by next year we're going to see some activity in our arena with the renovations.”

 West Lorne, Ont. was named Kraft Hockeyville in 2023. The prize came with hosting an NHL Exhibition game and $250,000 in arena upgrades. (Brent Lale/CTV News London)