Skip to content

City prepares to open outdoor rinks

City of Red Deer Parks staff have returned to the task of preparing outdoor ice surfaces.

City of Red Deer Parks staff have returned to the task of preparing outdoor ice surfaces.

They were delayed when resources were turned away temporarily so city crews could help with emergency snow removal in residential areas of the city.

“We are doing our very best to get these rinks ready in time for the holidays,” said Trevor Poth, parks superintendent.

Parks crews are once again cleaning and flooding skating rinks, as the residential plowing program wraps up. Many rink sites still require a large amount of water to establish an ice base.

The highest priority sites include Bower Ponds and the ice oval at the Golden Circle, to accommodate Christmas activities and tournament events. These sites are expected to open on Saturday.

Crews will next move to 18 supervised outdoor rinks located beside community activity centres, such as Rosedale, West Park and Oriole Park, and most of these sites should be open before Christmas. Crews need to assess each rink site by site to ensure they are safe for use.

Pending weather conditions, rinks at the various community activity centres will be ready by the middle of next week, with the exception of the rinks at Lancaster, Lonsdale, Grandview and South Hill. These four sites will be delayed for several days but may still open prior to the holiday season.

Other unsupervised sites including Anders on the Lake and Westlake will follow shortly after the rinks located by community activity centres, with the goal to open at least half of the unsupervised sites in time for the holiday season.

An update on progress will be announced next week.

For more information about skating rinks in the community, go to www.reddeer.ca or contact the city’s Recreation, Parks and Culture office at 342-8159.