Practice makes perfect but the B.C. Lions know their current practice facility is anything but.
“We’ve been in the current facility for a long time,” team president Duane Vienneau told 3DownNation. “It’s tired. It needs an upgrade. We want to give a better facility for our coaches and our players.”
While they play under the dome at BC Place, the Lions have been full-time residents in the Surrey neighbourhood of Whalley for over four decades. They began leasing their current practice facility beside Tom Binnie Park from the city in 1991, which also previously housed the team’s business operations until those moved to downtown Vancouver in 2023.
However, the building no longer meets the standards required for a professional sports organization and contributed to the Lions receiving the second-lowest grade of any team on the CFLPA report card. Among the anonymous responses, one player wrote that the staff “does what it can” but the amenities are “unsatisfactory compared to other teams in the CFL.”
Comments like those have increased pressure on the team to either find or erect a new facility, something which is a priority for team owner Amar Doman.
“Even before the report card, it’s something that we’ve been talking about. From the minute that Amar bought the team, to be completely honest,” Vienneau said.
“Amar is driven on this. He wants to give everything he possibly can to the team to be successful. We believe and he believes that a better facility helps that.”
The need for a new facility has been a hot-button topic for the franchise since before Doman assumed ownership in 2021, but the recent report card and field quality challenges have made it a priority. After the artificial turf at Tom Binnie Park failed a CFL quality test last October, the Lions were forced to bus seven minutes up the road to Hjorth Road Park in Guildford while preparing for the end of the regular season and playoffs.
“Part of the challenge for us is we feel that that part of our business isn’t being committed to excellence and the players, I believe, understand that,” Vienneau acknowledged. “They know we’re trying to work on fixes there. I’ve got my fingers crossed. All I can tell you is it’s not something that we’re not talking about here or there. We’ve got three, four, five different things we’re looking at right now.”
Because the Lions’ current facility is owned by the City of Surrey, the team is limited in what it can do to upgrade or renovate the building on its own. There are three years remaining on the five-year lease extension the club signed in 2022, which included a 33 percent discount on rent thanks to a partnering agreement for community involvement. Even so, the team is on the hook for over $1.39 million through 2027 to maintain the status quo.
Either side can sever the existing agreement with a 12-month written notice but without an alternative, Doman’s club will have to stay put in the short-term. The Lions have engaged in conversations with several different municipalities on the possibility of a future tenancy, each with their own advantages and disadvantages. As of now, they are committed to finding a new home but nothing is imminent.
“We have been working on a couple of things for a long time. We have nothing concrete yet,” Vienneau said.
“It’s very hard for me to (provide a timeline) right now because we have a few irons in the fire. Depending on where that goes, the timing is different. All I can tell you is that if Amar had it his way, it would be tomorrow.”
The B.C. Lions open rookie camp in Kamloops on Wednesday, May 7. Veterans report for training camp on Saturday, May 10.
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