What is believed to be the oldest remaining original basketball court in the world is in St. Stephen, and it is one step closer to becoming a sports tourism attraction.
Basketball NB says an Agreement in Principal has been reached between Canada1st Basketball Inc. and the St. Croix Vocational Center for the development and purchase of the property on King Street, which houses the SCVC Thrift Store as well as the basketball court upstairs.
“We are confident that a business case will be created over the next few months that will find a new site for our Thrift Store while building on our capacity to meet our core service mandate,” says Tony Whittaker, from the SCVC Board of Directors.
He adds it’s an exciting time for both SCVC and Canada 1st Basketball and a very important step forward for the community as a whole.
A special event and project update is being planned for October 17, 2018, which is the 125th anniversary of the first basketball game between teams in St. Stephen, NB, and Calais, Maine, on the local court.
The basketball court was first discovered, without damage, in 2010 after a fire in the building. Unfortunately, the court made headlines again in recent years after teenagers broke into the Thrift Store and vandalized the property.
