Oxford’s new Community Centre — the eastlink Wild Blueberry Centre — is fully funded and the doors are poised to open.
There’s no understating the importance of the new eastlink Wild Blueberry Centre. At $24.5-million, the project brings an incredibly important piece of recreational infrastructure to Oxford and the surrounding area.
While the Board members of the fundraising committee have consistently downplayed their efforts in the project, there’s no question that their dedication has delivered results, shepherding not only the many stakeholders who have contributed, but also keeping the community engaged with ongoing fundraising and outreach.
A tour of the facility last week impressed even those who have walked through the building many times. With the operational opening of the centre now less than a month away, everything is nearly done. It’s those last few little details that have pushed that opening — and a scheduled grand opening — further down the calendar.
Speaking for the committee, Jordan Burkhardt says the fundraising push to pay for the facility is wrapping up:
“We are excited to announce we have met the target for our initial capital campaign. We have had tremendous support locally. The final week before the deadline we were inundated with donations and still today these are being recognized with Facebook announcements. We have raised $2.6-million dollars locally. We are so grateful for everyone’s support.”
Burkhardt says the final costs for the project won’t be definitively known until all the invoices are in and bills are paid, “but we are confident we will be within budget.”
The transition from a fundraising effort to actually running the building is a big step. Burkhardt says it’s been a long time in coming:
“We have been over five years from concept to completion of the build and are excited to shift from this phase and focus on operations.”
There will still be a need to carry out ongoing fundraising activities. The committee holds an annual Duck Race on the River Philip — this year on September 12th. Proceeds from this and other efforts will help to cover annual operating costs.
Keeping the doors open and the lights on will be the focus initially, as everyone learns their role in its operation and the community responds — hopefully in a big way — by becoming members and paying the fees for recreational services.
The community centre has four committed, rent-paying tenants to provide a solid base income: the YMCA Daycare facility, the Y-REACH coordinator for Oxford, the Oxford Branch of the Cumberland Regional Library, whose rent is paid by the Town of Oxford, and the fitness centre, whose members will relocate from the current Rideau Street spot and be greeted by a space with completely new fitness equipment.
An unofficial tally of donations announced by the fundraising committee shows at least $24.3-million in confirmed funding, with many donors preferring to not publicly disclose the amounts they have committed (Donations as of July 23, 2026 — PDF download). Donations have come in, large and small, all with the aim of making the new community centre a reality.
Apart from the YMCA Daycare, the Library and the Fitness Centre, the eastlink Wild Blueberry Centre also features a full gymnasium; a walking track on the second story overlooking the gym; a large community room which can be rented in its entirety or divided into two good size rooms for activities that don’t require as much space; two kitchens; smaller rental spaces; a lounge area adjacent to the gym; a welcoming foyer with ascending staircase and elevators; twelve accessible, unisex bathrooms; and an attractive Donor Wall, which will be revealed in the coming weeks.
Parking for the community centre will be available in the front and rear of the building, and an accessway has been created to enable the eWBC to make use of the Oxford Church of the Nazarene parking area for overflow.
Several of the spaces in the building have been named by companies that have donated significant funds. See our previous coverage:
CIBC Adds Its Name to the OCC!
Scotiabank adds $200-Grand to support programming at the eastlink Wild Blueberry Centre!
