Toward the end of the third week of September, Danna Evans walked into the South End Community Centre and found about 15 desks sitting in the middle of an ice pad, waiting to be moved into offices. Evans is the City of Guelph's general manager of culture and recreation. She described the scene to GuelphToday as "all of that fine minute detail that's happening right now." Recreation staff had been in with racking and basketballs, and outside, workers were unloading trees from a flatbed.
So the building on Poppy Drive is nearly ready. The south end's routine is a different matter. The City has said the centre will open in steps, and for Pine Ridge and Westminster Woods that means the first winter will be a drop-in winter. Registered programs, club ice and bookings will still mostly be handled at Victoria Road and West End while the new building gets going.
Where the countdown stands on September 30
In March, deputy CAO Colleen Clack-Bush told a committee of the whole meeting that the City was aiming for a September 1 opening. That date has passed. Evans says the timeline was always more general than one day.
"We've always been talking (about) fall, whether that was September, October, November."
In a phone interview on Monday, September 21, published by GuelphToday the next day, she said the project was still on time and on budget, and that she hoped "to be able to announce something soon." The City updated its construction page on September 25. It says the building should be ready to start operating at the beginning of Q4 2026, with public opening targeted for Q4. Q4 starts tomorrow. Even so, we found no confirmed opening day or grand-opening event as of today.
Here's how far the project has come. The site work is nearly done: glazing is complete, and the rink boards and their glass are in. The arena refrigeration system was commissioned in Q2, and building systems and operator training were still underway through Q3. GuelphToday notes the project has been in the works since 2003, and construction started in 2023 beside Bishop Macdonell Catholic High School. The approved construction budget is $121 million. According to the City, 87 per cent of the funding comes from development charges, eight per cent from grants and five per cent from taxes. Most of the money, in other words, comes from fees on new building. The south end's growth is a big part of what paid for the centre being built there.
What opens first, and what waits
The City laid out the order in its July 23 notice about fall programs. For anyone planning a winter around the new building, the steps look like this:
- Drop-in programs, "later this fall." These come first, once the doors open.
- Registered programs, starting with winter registration. The City has not yet given a registration date for the South End Community Centre. The August 13 registration date was for the September-to-December session at existing facilities.
- Ice, gym and room bookings, date still to come. The centre's FAQ says the City is "not ready to take facility bookings." The City's ice-booking table still lists the first and last booking dates for the centre as "To be determined."
So when the doors open, the first things on offer will be drop-in activities. Swimming lessons, skating classes and team ice slots are things you register or book for, so they come in later steps. The City says it will expand programs that already run at other facilities and also add new ones built around what this building has. It hasn't published those programs yet.
How it compares with the two centres on today's schedule
The City's Fall/Winter 2026 drop-in swim schedule lists Victoria Road Recreation Centre and West End Community Centre. The public skating and shinny schedule for September 2026 to May 2027 lists the same two buildings. Here's how the new building compares:
| Facility | Pools | Ice | Gym and track |
|---|---|---|---|
| South End Community Centre | 25-metre, 8-lane lap pool plus leisure pool | Twin ice pads | Double gym and indoor walking track |
| West End Community Centre | 25-metre, 4-lane pool plus leisure and therapy pools | Twin ice pads | Gym |
| Victoria Road Recreation Centre | 50-metre, 6-lane pool that can be split into two 25-metre pools, plus leisure pool | One seasonal ice pad | Not listed |
Two things stand out. The new lap pool has twice as many lanes as West End's 25-metre pool, so lane swims should be less crowded once it's running. And the City says the double gym and walking track are "features no other Guelph Recreation facility has." Until now, nobody in Guelph has been able to use a City-run indoor walking track in January, wherever they live. Pine Ridge and Westminster Woods will have the first one close to home.
The pass you already have will work there
You won't need a new membership. The City says existing Recreation and Fitness passes will be valid at the South End Community Centre. Here are the adult prices on the City's current fee table, before tax, for April 1, 2026 to March 31, 2027:
- Recreation: $4.77 for one visit, $43.02 for 10 visits, $121.89 for three months, $373 for 12 months
- Fitness: $7.77 for one visit, $69.91 for 10 visits, $198.08 for three months, $594.24 for 12 months
Paying per visit makes sense in a winter when the new building runs mostly on drop-ins. A 10-visit Recreation pass costs a bit less than 10 single visits, and it lets you try the new pool or track without committing to three months up front. The City hasn't published South End-specific prices, so these citywide rates are the best guide for now.
The parts of this winter that stay the same
The City's FAQ is direct about the older buildings: "No, the other recreation facilities will remain open." The posted drop-in swim schedule runs from September 8 to March 28. The skating schedule runs through May 2027. Both are based at Victoria Road and West End. Until the City posts a South End schedule, those two buildings are where drop-in swims and public skates happen.
The same goes for organized sport. The October calendar for the Guelph Predators Ringette Association has practices and games at West End, Victoria Road and Centennial, among other rinks. It doesn't mention moving to the new centre. We didn't find any City announcement about which minor hockey, figure skating, ringette or swim clubs will get time at the new building. That makes sense while bookings aren't open. One more note for families whose schedules include Centennial: that arena is closed for repairs until October 5, 2026.
Around Poppy Drive and Clair Road this fall
The new building sits right next to South End Community Park and the Larry Pearson baseball diamonds. The park reopened for the season on May 15, 2026, with parking off Poppy Drive West and part of the lot fenced off for construction. The tennis courts opened along with the park. The City's September 25 update still calls park access temporary and says full access will be restored in Q3. Q3 ends today, and we haven't seen confirmation that the fencing is down. Check the parking setup before a weekend ball game.
For indoor programs this week, the closest option is still the Westminster Square Branch of the library at 31 Farley Dr. It has Korean Storytime on October 4, and Shake, Rattle and Read and Bouncing Babies on October 7.
On Clair Road, Centurion Coffee opened its second café at 30 Clair Rd. W. on November 7, 2025. Holy Chuck Burgers is listed as a tenant at Clairfield Commons, 1–15 Clair Road West, and a hiring post for the location mentions an October 2026 opening. So far that date comes from a job listing, not an announcement. Like the community centre, it's targeted for this fall with no firm opening day yet.
Our team at Andra Arnold will keep an eye on the City's updates. When the opening date, the South End drop-in schedule or the winter registration date is announced, we're happy to share the details with neighbours in Pine Ridge and Westminster Woods. Contact Us if you'd like a note when the City makes that announcement.
