Rainy River curling club undergoes major renovations

Ken Johnston

If you haven’t been to the Rainy River Curling Club lately you will be in for a surprise the next time you visit.
Talked about for three years, the club finally decided to get the job done when they ripped out the old bar/canteen on the second story. Never seen as a practical use of space, club members decided a new bar/canteen would be in order for the clubroom.
They build a new one north to south along the west wall of the second story. Before the horseshoe bar took up a lot of room and created a bottleneck to and from the west end of the room.
Club member and active in the renovation project, Murray Aikenhead, said, “This maximizes space and is more convenient for the bartender and cook.”
They could not move the old bar so they ripped it out a few weeks ago and then built the new one from scratch. They also added a new rangehood with fire suppressors built in.
Part of the reason for the delay was that the club needed to raise money for the project, which Aikenhead estimated ran about $5,000 for the materials alone.
Volunteers did the ripping out and new construction. Aikenhead said many club members helped and in a matter of a few weeks, between the ladies and men’s bonspiels, they had the work done.
Where the old bar/canteen was they installed new hardwood flooring, which was about the same cost as carpet and is a lot easier to clean.
“We have had nothing but positive feedback so far,” said Aikenhead.