The CBC is reporting that a rock climbing gym on Victoria Island in Ottawa, Canada will close its doors at the end of December as the National Capital Commission (NCC) gets ready to decontaminate the soil it sits on.
Vertical Reality opened on the west end of the island in 1993 by Peter Slivka. Since 2011, it’s been operated by his daughter.
The NCC has been gradually closing off the 5.6-hectare island — which is an important Indigenous site — to prepare for a lengthy two-phase decontamination project.
A public post on Vertical Reality’s Facebook page said the Coyote Rock Gym has offered to honour Vertical Reality memberships, and that anyone who can’t go there will be refunded.
The NCC, meanwhile, said the decontamination process is complex and closing the island will allow the work to happen safely. They also said they’re trying to find other options for the gym.
“We can assure you that the NCC is continuing to look for potential alternative premises for Vertical Reality so that it can continue operations,” Pelletier wrote.
However, the gym’s Facebook post made it clear that the gym would not be reopening
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