--------------------------------------------------------- The Basilica Recreation Centre - Before and After CHAPTER 8: THE CHALLENGE Most churches have a parish centre or hall where many activities hosted by various organizations associated with the church take place. This is part of church life, and the cost of operating such centres is usually considered as part of the overall operation of the church. Such was the case with the Holy Name Hall, where the operation was under the direction of the parish pastor and parish organizations that used the hall were not expected to pay rental. There were, however, fund raisers such as the minstrel shows, bazaars, and bowling alley revenues. With the new Basilica Recreation Centre, we had not only a new parish hall, but also a business component consisting of banquet facilities, a bowling alley, bingos and a rented portion to the Knights of Columbus. The cost of construction was quoted as about $800,000. The end cost was likely over $1 million. I can recall some discussion concerning financing of the hall through the Royal Bank over a 25 year period. A board was appointed to oversee the operation of the centre, but the parish was to be responsible for any shortfall in revenue, if necessary. Being executive director of such a large centre was no easy task. On one hand, there were the many demands of parish organizations that did not contribute to the financial health of the centre; and on the other, there was the need to promote the revenue producing area to ensure that bank payments could be met. Sometimes there was conflict between these two objectives, such as at times when the auditorium was used for a large banquet instead of a non- paying sporting event. Another important function in such a large organization is hiring adequate, capable full time and part time staff to operate the centre. Being a parish centre, some of the parishioners thought that their sons or daughters should have been hired for part time or summer jobs whether they were qualified or not. Overall, we were fortunate to have good dedicated staff and many volunteers to give of their time and talent to ensure that the young people were able to experience productive and meaningful experiences. 55