Politics & Government

Town Begins Building Ice Rink

Town working on 60 foot by 80 foot surface at Mills Pond Park.

The town has begun construction of a skating rink at Mills Pond Park.

Friday, members of the town Public Works Crew and Brian J. Wilson, director of Parks and Recreation, began placing and securing lumber to create a rink roughly 60 feet by 80 feet on one of the tennis courts at the park.

Weather permitting it will likely be at least a week and a half before the ice is ready. A specialized liner is expected to come in the middle of next week. After securing the boards to earch other, the town will have to install the liner, flood the area with 4 to 8 inches of water and then hope for a few consecutive cold days to freeze it, Wilson said.

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Traditionally Mills Pond has been the town’s skating area but the constructed rink will have a few advantages, Wilson said. Some residents were unaware of or apprehensive of the pond option, although the town will still monitor that area for skating as well.

“We thought if we had a skating area that was centrally located it would be an encouragement to come out and get some winter recreation,” Wilson said.

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The new area will be also be easier to maintain, he said.

Wilson, for example, has handheld ice maintenance equipment that, along with a hose, creates a sort of manual "Zamboni," a trademark brand of the large machines used to clean up and smooth ice at professional rinks.

He also hopes residents will help with tasks such as shoveling snow after a storm, since town crews will have to concentrate on the roads.

“We’re hoping people will maintain it a little bit,” he said.

There will be some rules he said, such as keeping skates off the tennis court and wearing only skates on the ice. Organized hockey also won’t be allowed although pickup games are OK if no one else is on the ice, Wilson said. Helmets will be encouraged.

Cost of the rink is approximately $1,500 Wilson said. The lumber can be reused, he said, and in theory the liner, which accounts for a little more than half of the cost, can be as well.

In talking to area towns, however, Wilson said he’s learned the liners don’t always hold up year to year.

While the idea of a rink has been discussed in years past, the idea for the project came together pretty quickly.

The department had a little extra money in its special event funds that covers activities such as summer concerts. The town began talking about the idea, discussed it with other area towns that have small rinks and initially considered placing it at the softball field on Dyer Avenue.

Some had concern about building it on clay, however, so they decided on the tennis courts. There is still some concerns about the asphalt on the court as well. Wilson said. It could take slightly longer for the water to freeze and there is the risk of skate damage to the surface. Carpets and ropes and the posted rules will be used to help prevent that. The tennis court also give the town the option of locking the area when the ice is not safe. 


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