UPEI's MacAdam Field to get new lighting thanks to Canada Games legacy fund

The 2023 Canada Winter Games legacy fund has awarded UPEI money to install lighting at MacAdam Field.

"We'll be installing four sets of lights which will be able to really bring the event, the location to a much greater capacity piece in terms of different venues that we can use it for," said Bruce Donaldson, the sponsorship and strategic partnership officer with the university's athletic and recreation department.

Donaldson said the project's total value is a little over $800,000, and $315,000 from the legacy fund will go toward the project.

He said the City of Charlottetown, the province, UPEI and Holland College will also provide funding for the lights.

"It just shows from a collaboration piece that I think we really need to look at this formula," Donaldson said.

"We have lots of different events that are going on right across the province, which is great. But I think we need to be provincially strategic in terms of how we want to approach some of these opportunities."

MacAdam Field was a product of the 2009 Canada Games that were held in P.E.I., and the funding is a result of the 2023 winter games that the Island hosted.

"I think they looked at it as it's a track, it's a field. It's just so many different possibilities to it," Donaldson said. "To add their commitment to it just makes it that much more viable."

Limited use without lights

Donaldson said not having lights on the field can be quite limiting. 

For instance, the 2024 U Sports Women's Rugby Championships were held at the university, and Donaldson said the event was a "perfect example" of how lights could have helped. 

"Because we didn't have lights, we had to use two fields but we couldn't use our primary field because it was grass and wasn't lit," he said.

"The fact that there [were] no lights there made us really have to move things around a little bit."

If you wanted to do a 5,000 to 7,000 small-venue concert, you could do that quite easily.— Bruce Donaldson, UPEI athletics and recreation

Donaldson said a number of groups from the community use the facility, such as the Charlottetown Privateers football team. Being unable to play under lights has created issues for them, too. 

"We've got one pitch that's got lights on it, but when we double that capacity piece, and all of a sudden you've got everything from rugby to field hockey to lacrosse to football, you know there's just [multiple] uses for it."

Donaldson said multicultural groups have asked to use the UPEI facilities, so the lights will expand opportunities to host events, and the field could be a great location to hold concerts. 

"We're not surrounded by residential, we've got parking," he said. "It would be one of those small-area spaces where if you wanted to do a 5,000 to 7,000 small-venue concert, you could do that quite easily."

The university hopes the lights will be installed and ready to be turned on by Aug. 15.