The New Year’s open house is returning to Sarnia’s Strangway Center for the first time in two years.
The event held to showcase the city’s winter recreation programs for adults is set for Jan. 7, 9:30 am to noon, at the center on East Street.
It will be the first open house at the recreation center for adults ages 20 and older since 2020.
“There’s so much being offered in terms of recreation programming that we want to share, and this is another opportunity to do so, especially for those individuals who prefer to engage face to face, ask questions and meet the instructors,” recreation superintendent Shelley Kern said in a news release.
The city’s Parks and Recreation Department opened registration for winter programs on Dec. 7.
“I would have to say it was one of the busiest days since I’ve worked here,” said Mike Neely, community services co-ordinator with the city.
“We had a lineup at the door – a lot of people also registered online.”
The lineup of programs, and registration information, is available online at www.sarnia.ca/RecRegistration.
“We did have some program sell out on the first day of registration and it has been relatively steady since then,” Neely said.
City staff saw it coming, he said.
“We had one of the busiest seasons the Strangway has ever had in the fall so it was a good indication the winter was going to be busy.”
An average of 250 people a day attended programs at the center during the fall, he said.
The city is offering a wide variety recreation programs at the center and other locations, Neely said.
“We really feel we can accommodate anyone’s interest – from arts and culture, to fitness programs, to technology classes.”
Registration for programs that aren’t at capacity continues all through the winter session, he said.
“It does pro-rate the cost for you if you start after the start date,” Neely added.
He said the open house will focus on the city’s “low-cost, drop-in programs,” such as shuffle board, euchre, carpet bowling, table tennis, corn hole, Knit and Chat and others.
It will also be an opportunity to meet with some of the instructors and get “a real good sense of what we offer here at Strangway,” Neely said.