30 truckloads of concrete has been poured on the Southampton Coliseum floor as part of the arena renovation project.
During the pour, two previous long-time Coliseum employees met at centre ice to each place a coin to be buried under the concrete.
Harold Henry, locally known as “Hardy,” placed a coin from Southampton’s 125th anniversary and Robert “Butch” Johnson placed a Saugeen Shores Pumpkinfest coin from 2000. The men had worked at the Coliseum for 30+ years each, with many fond memories from their time at the facility.
Both employees remembered when the arena was rebuilt in the 1970s, including the final winter before the new facility opened. That winter the ice pad and boards remained for the 1976-77 ice season and players played outside on the original pad—but with no roof.
As Ted Quennell, former Southampton Recreation Director, recalls, “It was the snowiest winter ever!”
The floor pour is part of the Town’s Coliseum Floor Replacement construction project, which is anticipated to last until the end of August 2019.
