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Friday, July 11, 2025

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Kenton is a vibrant community and local businesses have pitched in to ensure a bright future for the community’s main meeting place, Kenton Memorial Hall. On Thursday, July 3, president of the KCE (Kenton Community Enterprise) Cam Hunter, and KCE secretary Debbie Routledge joined Kenton branch manager of Fusion Credit Union, Greg Facey for a ceremonial $25,000 presentation earmarked for a hall kitchen upgrade.

Local people have put their shoulders to the wheel with volunteer committee members of KCE spearheading the renovation. Local trades are lined up to do the work.

KCE is an umbrella organization with over a dozen committee members that manage Kenton’s recreation assets including the hall, rink and Kenton dam. The hall is a central all-season feature to the rural community, a welcoming place for community events such as weddings, funerals, event breakfasts; and the local restaurant has been known to make use of the hall during overflow situations.

“So it's kind of a give and take,” said Hunter. While not necessarily expecting a spike in use, the renovation aims to better serve existing needs which are significant. Hunter said, “There was like 270 or 280 for breakfast here on July 1st, and 280 for supper.”

The well-developed plan involved input from kitchen workers. Hunter and Routledge explained the upgrade that will bring the kitchen up to code. Debbie’s husband Mark Routledge, a builder by trade, has produced blueprints outlining structural and functional changes.

The renovation aims to streamline food service. Significant changes include moving the interior wall forward to improve traffic flow. Features include new entry points, dedicated closet space for workers, a handwashing station, increased refrigeration, large triple sinks, a commercial dishwasher and probably one large commercial stove. Exhaust fans, an additional fridge for drinks and a roll-up door for security are also part of the plan. The kitchen will have stainless steel countertops and a center island for prep work. While not officially deemed a commercial kitchen, it will meet necessary food prep and health standards.

Local expertise

Initial expectations for the kitchen reno were around $40,000–$50,000, but with the cost of commercial-grade appliances and materials, early estimates quickly ballooned to approximately $160,000–$165,000. Despite the increase, they feel prepared financially.

They’ve chosen not to run formal fundraisers to avoid volunteer burnout. Funding sources include donations from other businesses, the RM of Wallace-Woodworth, internal savings, grants, and careful budgeting.

“We've canvassed quite a few organizations and we've been fairly successful,” says Hunter. “KCE’s been sneaking a little bit of money away just out of our operating.”

Their ace in the hole is the number of local people with an interest in the community.

Lane Routledge, a local electrician has provided a quote Cam Hunter says, adding, “And then Jeff Hunter has come back…he's starting the plumbing business, so we'd asked him for quotes for the dishwasher and plumbing stuff.”

Adam Fordyce was instrumental in writing the grant application to Fusion Credit Union. Although he’s on KCE’s rink committee, Fordyce’s administrative skills and community involvement have proved a valuable asset.

The initial application was for $10,000, but Fusion returned with a larger commitment. A critical moment in that conversation was when the funders asked whether the project could proceed without outside support. The team clarified that it could not, as they lacked the capacity to service debt and would be fortunate just to break even. So, the financial institution decided to up the amount to $25,000 to get the project moving.

“We're right at the money we need,” said Hunter. “We're a little over, actually. Surprised with the Fusion (donation).” So unforeseen costs shouldn’t derail the project, and the actual work is expected to begin in December or January. “We want to have everything ordered so we're not holding up people.”

Fusion tops up Kenton hall’s reno fund

By Anne Davison