Clubs Call On Council To Install Ice At Queens Place

Ice is the hot topic at Region of Queens council this week.

Several members of the public wanted to know why Queens Place isn’t planning to install ice in the rink until September.

Acting general manager of the South Shore Bantam Lumberjacks Jeremy Kini says his is one of a number of organizations relying on the ice surface being open every summer to prepare their players for the fall.

Currently, Centennial Arena, the RBC and BMO four-pad facilities in Halifax and the St. Margaret’s Centre in St. Margaret’s Bay are renting ice time and Kini says parents are making the drive to get their kids to practice.

“There’s families driving three hours to go get on the ice in the city. That’s ludicrous to me. That’s wrong. We have a number of ice surfaces in our region. I don’t understand why we can’t work together and get one ice surface open for us to work on.”

The ice was removed from Queens Place in March.

Staff decided to take the opportunity to complete necessary maintenance projects during the down time instead of closing the rink for portions of both this summer and next.

Up the road in Bridgewater, the Lunenburg County Lifestyle Centre also took advantage of the COVID-19 closure to undertake a major engineering project and install a new dehumidification system.

LCLC general manager Kent Walsh says it’s unfortunate because the LCLC had planned on keeping their ice surface in this summer for the first time.

Walsh says it would take about two weeks to install the ice but they’re not planning on doing that just yet.

He says there are still too many unknowns around what precautions would be required to ensure the safety of staff and participants.

“I don’t think that waiting is a bad idea, in a lot of respects. If we get another phase or two under our belt of opening up, I think it’s going to be easier for everyone to enjoy recreation.”

Hockey Nova Scotia, the body that oversees minor hockey in the province, has submitted a plan to provincial health officials through Sport Nova Scotia outlining the precautions they will be taking to get teams back on the ice this season.

A spokesperson for Hockey Nova Scotia says that plan will be revealed on a conference call with their members Tuesday night.

During the council Zoom meeting, Region of Queens CAO Chris MacNeill pointed out even after the safety issues of opening the ice to the public are addressed, there are financial and staffing implications to consider as well.

McNeill estimates closing Queens Place for the past three months has cost the municipality $300,000 in lost revenue and maintenance charges.

That amount will need to be added to the $650,000 council already budgets each year to help subsidize operations at the facility.

McNeill says finding staff who are certified to work at Queens Place at this time of year may also present a challenge as many workers book their holidays in what is traditionally a slow time of the year for the facility.

“If we want to go back to full operation, recognizing there potentially may be more use, as was suggested this morning, then we will need to cancel vacations for all those employees and I’m not sure when they’re going to get it. Because once we start back up in September/October, which is our busy season, that becomes a problem as well.”

McNeill says it’s his understanding that no rinks run by municipalities, such as Queens Place, are currently open.

But a call to Sackville Sports Stadium, the only arena run directly by Halifax’s recreation department shows that facility plans to offer ice access beginning July 6.

General Manager Greg MacIsaac says being part of a larger recreation department with more resources helped speed the process along.

“Where we are integrated within HRM Rec [Recreation], we were able to utilize the systems that HRM has in place. So when HRM presented its proposal to the NSHA (Nova Scotia Health Authority), we were able to get the go-ahead to be able to open up our rink.”

Lumberjacks GM Kini says he took a trip in to see how Centennial Arena in Halifax operates and believes a similar system could work at Queens Place.

“The players come with gloves on. They have whatever they need. They get on the ice, they do they’re session and then they walk off the opposite end. There’s no need for them to touch or do anything in terms of washroom facilities.”

Region of Queens Mayor David Dagley says it’s not as simple as that.

“That is a big difference when you have a non-profit rink and you have a municipally-owned rink and arena and fitness centre, that we operate, because Queens Place is our responsibility and we can’t abdicate that to anyone else.”

Dagley says opening a facility to the public and denying them access to washrooms is not an option.

He says the municipality would love to have the ice open but they need to know it will get enough use to justify the cost.

“Putting ice in is probably a ten to $15,000 expense and then you’re into the electricity that you require to keep the ice in. We get a bill every month which is probably $20,000, plus, per month. We just have to make sure that if we are going to provide activities, we have to be responsible to taxpayers, and all taxpayers, in that respect.”

Dagley says council has heard the concerns and staff will be contacting the interested groups to see if there will be enough use to warrant installing the ice before the end of summer.

Kini is optimistic a solution can be found that will get his team and others back on the ice in August.

“I have faith that the staff and the council in Liverpool will be able to get this facility up and running prior to September first. I really do. And as the ice goes in, they can easily show us the protocols and we will do whatever it takes to get ourselves in there and up and running.”

Reported by Ed Halverson 
E-mail: edhalversonnews@gmail.com
Twitter: @edwardhalverson