Mayor of Bournemouth: Permanent ice rink would be good for town (From Bournemouth Echo)
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Mayor of Bournemouth: Permanent ice rink would be good for town
8:00am Wednesday 9th January 2013 in News By Arron Hendy
ICE ONE: Bournemouth Mayor Philip Stanley-Watts at the Christmas ice rink in the Lower Gardens
THE mayor of Bournemouth voiced his hopes the town will have a permanent ice rink again one day as he pulled on his skates.
Cllr Philip Stanley-Watts and his sister Gill Giles took to the ice on the last day of the outdoor festive rink in the Lower Gardens as he continues his recovery from suffering a cardiac arrest in November.
The Boscombe councillor used to skate at the old rink in Westover Road before it closed down in 1991 and would love to see a permanent replacement in the town.
“There’s a long tradition of skating in Bournemouth,” he said.
“We’ve been pushing for a long time for a permanent rink and one would go well in King’s Park.”
A new gymnasium has opened at the site of the old Westover Road rink.
But Bournemouth council has planning permission for a 5,000-seater ice stadium in King’s Park and sought interest from developers.
And Independent councillor Ron Whittaker has argued that the popularity of the outdoor Christmas attraction and the one currently inside the BIC illustrates a permanent rink would prosper.
Tracy Turrell-Davies, operations manager at the Lower Gardens rink, said both rinks have been “extremely busy” and it is hoped the outdoor rink will become a Christmas fixture.
The festive rink remained popular on its last day of opening and cllr Stanley-Watts said he has been trying to remain within his limits since he suffered a cardiac arrest and collapsed in the changing rooms at the Littledown Sports Centre.
He completed a 2k charity run at Christmas.
His sister Gill, 53, who lives near Wimborne, said: “I think he’s getting back to full health but he still has to take it easy.”
Comments(19)
Pablo23
says...
8:47am Wed 9 Jan 13
MJD wrote:Agreed, they seem to have been chuntering about ice rinks for years.
Stop talking about it and crack on with it Chop chop Hubba hubba.
Everyone seems to want one, so why all the hot air and no action?
I'm not that into it myself, but I'm all for any activity that gets youngsters off of their bottoms and moving about.
Will it be made big enough to be able to host ice hockey matches I wonder.
Arjay
says...
9:10am Wed 9 Jan 13
Just wait until the 'usual suspects' arrive here to have their say.....
'it's all a conspiracy' ...'nobody wants an ice rink'....etc, etc......you know, the usual doom and gloom merchants......
Yes Pablo23, it needs to be big enough for the full range of ice sports... usually referred to as 'Olympic size' ... Whether that is actually essential ?....
It certainly needs to be big enough for proper ice hockey competition...
CourtOffside
says...
9:29am Wed 9 Jan 13
As others said - let's get on with it. There's a big gap in the market in the South for ice sports in terms of participation and spectating.
I cannot wait for the puck to drop!
jobsworthwatch
says...
9:42am Wed 9 Jan 13
jeebuscripes
says...
10:44am Wed 9 Jan 13
poolebob
says...
12:19pm Wed 9 Jan 13
If a permanent year round rink made a profit the private sector would build one.
A rink may be a good idea but are Bournemouth residents prepared to subsidise it from their Council Tax.
On second thoughts living in Poole, I am all for it.
CourtOffside
says...
12:29pm Wed 9 Jan 13
poolebob wrote:An *ice stadium* is a very different beast to a mere rink.
Let's face reality.
If a permanent year round rink made a profit the private sector would build one.
A rink may be a good idea but are Bournemouth residents prepared to subsidise it from their Council Tax.
On second thoughts living in Poole, I am all for it.
An ice stadium is a multi-purpose indoor arena and can provide multi sports facilities for anything from Basketball to Volleyball as well as being a concert and exhibition venue - indeed it can be used for any other thing you might want to do in a large indoor arena.
As such there's no reason why it won't be profitable - and that's precisely the reason the private sector in Eddie Mitchell *is* interested in developing it as reported previously on here.
Adrian Fudge
says...
12:32pm Wed 9 Jan 13
poolebob wrote:You are spot on
Let's face reality. If a permanent year round rink made a profit the private sector would build one. A rink may be a good idea but are Bournemouth residents prepared to subsidise it from their Council Tax. On second thoughts living in Poole, I am all for it.
If a rink was profitable then , especially with the Council prepared to put in the land at Kings Park for free, then an operator would come forward but not one showed any interest
If the powers that be think that an ice rink would be an assett they will have to be prepared to subsidise it and that could be at the expense of other more important services such as Day Centres and care for the elderly
jeebuscripes
says...
1:18pm Wed 9 Jan 13
They said that they could keep it open but they'd have to close libraries, day care centres or other essential public services.
What makes Bournemouth Council think they can afford to develop and run a luxury such as this?
Is it their track record in delivering quality leisure services to the people of the borough on time and under budget?
Laughable.
Pablo23
says...
1:36pm Wed 9 Jan 13
My missus got hit square in the face by a flying ice hockey puck there when she was watching a game as a child.
You can't buy memories like that.
CourtOffside
says...
1:42pm Wed 9 Jan 13
jeebuscripes wrote:What's an athletics stadium in Yorkshire got to do with it?
I see Jessica Ennis' home stadium in Sheffield is closing down as the council there can't afford to run it.
They said that they could keep it open but they'd have to close libraries, day care centres or other essential public services.
What makes Bournemouth Council think they can afford to develop and run a luxury such as this?
Is it their track record in delivering quality leisure services to the people of the borough on time and under budget?
Laughable.
CourtOffside
says...
1:51pm Wed 9 Jan 13
Adrian Fudge wrote:What a lot of FUD.
poolebob wrote:You are spot on
Let's face reality. If a permanent year round rink made a profit the private sector would build one. A rink may be a good idea but are Bournemouth residents prepared to subsidise it from their Council Tax. On second thoughts living in Poole, I am all for it.
If a rink was profitable then , especially with the Council prepared to put in the land at Kings Park for free, then an operator would come forward but not one showed any interest
If the powers that be think that an ice rink would be an assett they will have to be prepared to subsidise it and that could be at the expense of other more important services such as Day Centres and care for the elderly
I guess you missed the global economic meltdown then.
Developers don't generally have the operating capital necessary to undertake this kind of project sat in the bank.
Banks aren't lending. Finance for major capital projects is very very very difficult to come by.
That's why there was no take up on the tender, and why Eddie Mitchell is speaking to Maxim Demin and not a bank about financing it.
steveatbournemouth
says...
2:08pm Wed 9 Jan 13
All those that want one built with public money just go to BIC now kids are back at school - it is EMPTY.
CourtOffside
says...
2:25pm Wed 9 Jan 13
steveatbournemouth wrote:So - no-one should ever build anything new because everything profitable is already in situ?
Question - if it was profitable then there would be one already. As a ratepayer I think we have enough problems without another white elephant, thanks.
All those that want one built with public money just go to BIC now kids are back at school - it is EMPTY.
What a load of rubbish.
No-one wants it built with public money, but private finance is potentially being offered by Max Demin.
As far as the point about the BIC is concerned - in order to be profitable, the stadium wouldn't be an ice rink 24/7. This is such an important point that no-one seems to grasp when commenting on the story.
Ice can be covered very easily. In a matter of hours an ice rink can be turned into a basketball court, tennis courts, an exhibition centre.. etc etc.
This means that during term times and other occasions when there is no demand for public skating sessions the building doesn't need to sit idle - it can be pretty much anything it needs to be. For this reason I really don't see the viability of the ice stadium as an issue - as long as it is properly designed and managed.
Arjay
says...
10:29pm Wed 9 Jan 13
steveatbournemouth wrote:You cannot compare attendances at a Christmas 'fun' rink with the attendances likely from proper ice rink.
Question - if it was profitable then there would be one already. As a ratepayer I think we have enough problems without another white elephant, thanks.
All those that want one built with public money just go to BIC now kids are back at school - it is EMPTY.
Where ice rinks have been closed down in this country in recent years it's either because of worn out facilities, or difficulties with leases.
It's never about lack of interest.
Those who remember the Westover Rd ice rink may recall that not only was there public skating for all, but there were specialised sessions for figure skating, speed skating, ice dancing. Even ice hockey (although the rink was really too small for 'proper' league ice hockey).
We're not talking about just a 'family fun' facility here, but a proper sporting one.
And with no other facility of that type within 50+ miles, it would be busy, no question about that!...
s-pb2
says...
11:08pm Wed 9 Jan 13
tomtomgo
says...
12:12am Thu 10 Jan 13
al sizes). Also.. I'm a pretty big advocate in this country of the construction of ice rinks and the development of ice sports(so you'll know where I stand on this issue).
For starters, the person who commented about about the closure of DVS - a complete load of crap. The stadium was built in mind for the 1991 university games held in Sheffield, with the intention of either Sheffield Wednesday or United potentially being a tennant after the games. This didn't work out for a variety of reasons (mainly both stadiums were of a better standard.. and didn't have a running track). The building within itself was a complete white elephant - it cost too much but also, there wasn't a clearly-defined role for the stadium. Even now, its income pretty much comes from the gym inside and local non-league teams using it as a football pitch.
However, an ice rink in Bournemouth could be spe
Another important thing (which some people seem to presume) is that the building would be council-owned. It isn't - it's being offered by a PRIVATE investor. Huge difference. Once something like that is built, private ice rink companies such as Planet Ice and Silver Blades would show interest, because the conurbation of the Bournemouth area has a pretty big population, especially when you consider places such as Poole and Christchurch next door - a large population to potentially generate income from.
Also.. as somebody has mentioned, the closure of ice rinks hasn't been due to the lack of interest, but more so the inability to update ice rinks (poor ownership) and the usual large land it sits on (ideal for property developers and supermarkets wanting to expand).
Like others have also said, the idea of it being a multi-purpose arena (5,000 seats is quite impressive.. allows the town to attract larger-name bands/musicians to the town - further diversifying potential income sources) means that other events could be used - sporting (e.g. basketball) and events.
Good luck to you folk wanting an ice rink, Bournemouth certainly deserves one.
pete woodley
says...
9:03am Thu 10 Jan 13
MJD says...
8:34am Wed 9 Jan 13