The 100 Mile Snowmobile Club is seeking a Northern Development Initiative Trust (NDIT) grant for log clubhouse maintenance to avoid their clubhouse falling into terminal disrepair.
The clubhouse is located at the 99 Mile recreational trails area, and is shared by four clubs: the 100 Mile Snowmobile Club, the Big Horn Archery Club, the South Cariboo Track and Trail Dirtbike Association and the 100 Mile Model Flyers Club. Rick Kyllo, the president of the 100 Mile Snowmobile Club, adds that there are other usages for the clubhouse.
"The clubhouse is used for meetings. Even South Cariboo Search and Rescue uses the clubhouses for meetings, so it's a good meeting spot, plus it's got a good kitchen. So you can make coffee and food if you desire," Kyllo added.
The clubhouse was originally constructed in 1974 by Jack Barnett, who had received a grant to construct the clubhouse. Five decades of exposure to the elements have left a mark on its exterior, which requires refinishing.
"It all has to be ground down with grinders, right down to good wood again. And then it has to be sanded a couple of times - then it has to be stained twice, and then it has to be clear-coated twice. And then when all that's done, they put the chinking in between the logs," Kyllo explained.
The total cost of the repairs would be somewhere between $36,000 to $40,000, according to Kyllo.
A letter, which was sent to the District of 100 Mile House Council by Marc DeChamplain, the vice president of the 100 Mile Snowmobile Club, on May 30, said that there have already been several renovations to the log house.
"Past improvements to the log house have included a new metal roof, all new windows, a new high-efficiency furnace, all new appliances, and some insulation improvements," DeChamplain wrote. Kyllo added that the new roof was installed eight years ago.
To get the money to do the exterior of the log house, the Snowmobile Club will be applying to NDIT for a grant. Kyllo said that they are requesting the NDIT give a grant that will cover the majority of the log house maintenance.
"NDIT will pay 70 per cent of the cost of doing the logs, and then the regional district [Cariboo Regional District] and the municipality, we're hoping, will pony up the balance," Kyllo explained.
He noted that they have not received any funding for the project as of yet, and the cost is too much for the snowmobile club to do alone. The deadline for submitting to the NDIT is July 31.
The District of 100 Mile House council has already unanimously approved sending a letter of support to the 100 Mile Snowmobile Club for their grant application during their June 10 District Council meeting.
If the logs are left unmaintained, Kyllo said they will degenerate to the point where they will not be structurally sound.
"Bugs will start penetrating the building and damaging the logs. Mice will start eating it, all the rest, they're just like anything. If you leave it lying around long enough, it's going to deteriorate," Kyllo added.
If the grant is approved and the project is completed, Kyllo said that the building could stand for another 50 years.
"If we don't get snow anymore and the club dissolves - this goes back to the city (District of 100 Mile House), and I'm sure the city can find a use for it, because it's a beautiful building that's worth over a million dollars to replace it," Kyllo added.
If the grant does not come through, Kyllo says there is no plan B, reiterating the snowmobile club cannot afford such a project, nor would they be able to find the volunteers to do it.
"Most of our club are not the youngest guys in the world anymore, and like I said, it's just too much danger, because it should be done by a professional, not by a bunch of amateurs," Kyllo added.
With files from Patrick Davies.
