Orillia City Council has given the go ahead for the appointment of a special committee to create and administer a Sports Hall of Fame for the city.
The motion passed during last nights council meeting.
A hall of fame already exists in Orillia – however it is not sports specific.
David Kennett, Vice Chair of the Recreation Advisory Committee, says the Hall of Fame will recognize not just individual athletes but also teams.
Some members of council expressed their displeasure at creating a new committee – stating the existing Recreation Advisory Committee could administer the Sports Hall of Fame on it’s own.
Kennett disagrees – he says the roles and responsibilities of the two committees are different in that one is responsible for identifying issues and the other is designed as a celebratory committee.
Dave Town, Chair of the Orillia Hall of Fame, says members of the Sports Hall should at least be familiar with local sports history.
Town says most people are not aware of the rich sporting history Orillia has – and that the creation of a Sports Hall of Fame would help preserve a big piece of Orillia’s history.
It was also brought up during Monday’s council meeting that this would not necessarily be a Sports “Hall” of Fame – it could also take the form of a walk or wall of fame as well.
