Proposed Football Facilities Upgrade for Cornwall Minor Football Association

1. CORNWALL MINOR FOOTBALL ASSOCIATION Proposal to Cornwall City Council on April 27th, 2009 Teamwork Pride Commitment

2. CMFA HISTORY • In our 5th year of existence • Play football for 8 months of the year in Cornwall • Two seasons of football • Spring House League Season : Mid March to Early July • Fall Competitive Season: Mid August to Late November • In our first season we had 60 football players • In 2009 we have 500 football players and 45 cheerleaders • Received two Ontario Trillium Foundation grants over the last three years. (2007 and 2009) • Our growth has come from the City of Cornwall, Akwesasne and Stormont, Glengarry & Dundas Counties.

3. CMFA TODAY • Current home is Joe St. Denis Field and the adjacent clubhouse • Only regulation size football size field available to us in Cornwall • Joe St. Denis Field suffers from chronic over-use • Share field with lacrosse and baseball • During football season over 120 CMFA athletes will practice on Joe St. Denis per day, using every corner of grass available • CMFA has acquired $270,000 worth of football equipment over last 5 years, not including our electronic scoreboard. • Spent $10,000 over last two years renovating our clubhouse • We have outgrown our home field and the clubhouse • CMFA spends $5,000 each spring to rent gyms, fields and the soccer bubble. We are unable to practice outside.

4. WHO WE ARE • Over 90 coaches and 100 additional volunteers in spring and fall • Football gives athletes of all shapes and sizes an opportunity to stay active and get fit • CMFA provides all necessary safety equipment to every player • Cost to outfit average player is $500.00 • Football is the ultimate team game. Football helps teach our youth discipline, commitment and volunteerism • CMFA has never turned an athlete away because of an inability to pay registration fees. This burden to the CMFA has increased 300% over the last three years. (2009 projected cost is $8,000) • Our business sponsors help us shoulder some of that burden.

5. OUR FUTURE • We have great concerns about our future • We are bursting at the seams at Joe St. Denis Field. We have outgrown the clubhouse and need additional field(s) • We require one location for practice fields, a game field and a clubhouse. Football equipment is difficult to move around • Worried about the City of Cornwall and its intentions for Joe St. Denis Field and Bob Turner Arena site. Will we have a home? • CMFA looking to expand the programs offered. Including additional age groups and an Ontario Varsity Football League (OVFL) franchise. We are unable to do that at this point • Ideally we require additional clubhouse facilities, one game quality field and two practice fields • City of Cornwall has always accommodated our needs, but resources are limited and not available to keep us growing

6. COMMITMENT TO OUR COMMUNITY • The CMFA is proposing the construction of: a) One artificial grass game field (with lighting) b) Two natural grass practice fields c) One clubhouse • The Cornwall Minor Football Association wants to be in partnership with the City of Cornwall • The CMFA will contribute $10,000 - $20,000 per year to this project, and can provide this capital over a 7 to 10 year period • The shared funding opportunity with the Provincial and Federal governments is a once in a lifetime opportunity to construct something our community can be proud of