In a move that comes as a surprise to some word out of Kelowna is that the Warriors are not moving as previously announced.

To those in the Delta area that had high hopes of having a BCHL Junior A club playing out of Delta’s Sungod Arena comes as a let-down.

They were initially impressed, but also miffed at the re-location of the franchise given the little facts that were released to the general public, but to others it simply doesn’t matter.

Delta’s last two BCJL (then known as the BCJHL) team (Delta Sun’s) played out of Delta’s Sungod Arena, and the first was from 1978-1979 and the last club was known as the Delta Flyers who played from 1985-1988.

It’s interesting to note that the 86-87 team was coached by current Vancouver Giants goalie coach Paul Fricker who was drafted by the Hartford Whalers in the 9th round, 176th overall in the 1980 NHL Entry Draft.

Several factors came to play in the first move and mostly it was about the lack of fan support given the team, but for that who’s to blame?

Several in the area knew nothing about the team as quite simply they did nothing to engage the

general public in the area of North Delta, so lack of support goes without saying.

So when it was released (more-so by social media) that Delta might get a franchise which would be a relocation franchise residents in the area were surprised to say the least.

True – meeting did take place between the Corporation of Delta, the Sungod Arena management and the potential new owners, users of the facility were questioning the move.

First that shocks some is the lack of parking and second would be the upgrade or improvements Sungod would require.

Who would pay for the upgrades, how would it affect the operation for the North Delta MHA and would this displace any current users and oh yea – lighting at the facility is terrible.

I say this as the trees have outgrown the current lights on the entrance and in the parking lot of the facility that was initially opened in September 1977 by then Delta Mayor Tom Goode who served from 1973-1979.

Upgrades have been done to the pool, the weight room and that section of the building, but other than joining the two buildings (which were initially separate), the one change that one sees is the score clock is new.

The staff do an exceptional job in keeping Delta’s “Show Palace” in top shape and when it was initially opened the community was smaller and suited the area.

Now after much consultation it’s revealed that the West Kelowna Warriors will be staying in the Okanagan City.

The announcement was made after the first period of the game against the Merritt Centennials and as mentioned by West Kelowna Mayor Doug Findlater, suitable investors were found to assist in keeping the team in West Kelowna.

Initially it was reported that the team was losing money, which prompted the possible move and speculation of Delta acquiring the BCHL franchise.

Further information will be released early in the upcoming week of March 6th.