Operates an arena with a standard sized ice surface and 4 dressing rooms

A lot of hockey players and fans remember the Cobalt arena, named after Father Les Costello. Photo by Jeff Turl.

1 / 1 A lot of hockey players and fans remember the Cobalt arena, named after Father Les Costello. Photo by Jeff Turl.

One of the most historic arenas in Ontario is up for sale.

Cobalt's "Father Les Costello Arena" has a long history and was the scene of many victories and defeats over the years. Many hockey players from North Bay and area will remember skating in the rink, and partiers will recall the Miner's Festivals.

The arena is a victim of the steady decline affecting many small towns in Canada, and Cobalt can no longer pay for the maintenance and repairs. The price tag for the rink is $125,000. It comes with a standard sized ice surface, a gym, and 4 dressing rooms.

"It's the cost and lack of use," Cobalt Mayor Tina Sartoretto told BayToday. "Maintaining an arena is very expensive. Our population is half of what it was 30 years ago."

Sartoretto says the arena is not being used enough by the people of Cobalt and was costing its citizens well over $150,000 a year to maintain and operate.

The town presently owns 14 other building in the community, including the Classic Theatre which hosts plays and concerts. Buildings that are being used are being kept, but others will be sold off. The community earlier sold off its train station.

"We're focusing on economic development and in the last six years there have been a number of small shops that have opened," said the Mayor.

The arena has been proudly operating for 60 years and is named after Father Les Costello, a founder of the famous hockey team the Flying Fathers which toured North America playing in exhibition games to raise money for charities. Costello also preached at St. Patrick's Church in Cobalt after a two-year stint in the NHL with the Toronto Maple Leafs.

He died in 2002 in a rink in Kincardine while playing for the Flying Fathers.

Costello was hit by a puck, fell, and struck his head on the ice. He went into a coma and died a week later.

Hockey has a long history in Cobalt and in 1906 had a team called the Cobalt Silver Kings played in the National Hockey Association, which was the predecessor of the NHL.

Now, the town's arena faces an uncertain future, but real estate agent Malcolm Alexander of Re/Max Aim North Realty calls himself an "eternal optimist" explaining the town is rezoning the site for light industrial use.

"We're hoping to attract light manufacturing or a repair and storage combination," said Alexander, adding that he's had a number of inquiries about the property already.

He's even been contacted by a company out of Alberta looking to set up a hockey school.

Meanwhile Mayor Tina Sartoretto feels her town still has a shot.

"We're struggling like every other little town to try and maintain core business and essential services but those that are not essential we are trying to determine which of them have the most value for the expenditure," explains Sartoretto. "Museums are important because Cobalt's history is so unique and if they attract people to town and those people spend money at the businesses in Cobalt, then those businesses stay here and Cobalt then has a tax base.

"So right now the focus is, let's work together to try and improve our tourism base."

She's got a good lead. Cobalt lays claim to being Ontario’s Most Historic Town and is a Parks Canada National Historic Site,