THUNDER BAY — A City of Thunder Bay official has raised the prospect of re-examining the target for user numbers at the city's outdoor skating rinks, as it may no longer be a realistic objective.
If the target is lowered, it could reduce the risk of additional rink closures.
Since 2017, four boarded ice surfaces have been phased out in various neighbourhoods because not enough skaters were using them on a regular basis.
Some parents are expressing alarm after learning the city is once again conducting a user count at 32 boarded rinks, 11 pond rinks and two skating ovals.
Brent Park on Balsam Street and Waddington Park on Grenville Avenue each lost one of their two boarded rinks in 2018.
They were replaced by skating ovals after failing to meet the user threshold of 10 skaters per hour.
The previous year, Wayland Park on Euclid Avenue and Tarbutt Park on Tarbutt Street were each reduced to one boarded rink for the same reason.
Cory Halvorsen, manager of parks and open spaces for the city, says the user count that's currently underway has been conducted annually for more than a decade.
He told tbnewswatch.com each rink is monitored on six different occasions during the month of February to determine the average number of users per hour.
The data is included in an annual report–due in the spring–to city council.
Asked about the possibility another round of cutbacks might be in the works, Halvorsen said "We'll have to assess what the user rates look like, and whether we're comfortable with them."
He said no rink is unique in terms of usage, as there has been a general decline in activity.
"Twenty-five years ago, there was probably more people on the outdoor rinks. We may just have to consider whether the target user rates are still appropriate or not...as opposed to making significant changes to the program."
Times have changed...Everyone seems to have their kids busy, and signed up for things. When you finally have time is when you go out on the rink."
He said if the counts show there are consistent user numbers, and "we're comfortable that that's still a reasonable amount of use we're getting at the facilities, you could consider changing the target."
Barry George, whose family uses the rinks at Carrick Park on Marlborough Road., feels the target number the city uses is unrealistic.
He suggested there's more than just data that needs to be considered, citing the health benefits that outdoor recreation provides to youth, and the fact that rinks provide "a safe community space" for kids.
"Taxes aren't going down, but don't look to removing relatively low-cost overhead infrastructure that provides so much benefit to the community," said George, a Dougall Media employee.
He's also advising parents to ensure their families use their neighbourhood facility, particularly at the five locations that have dual boarded ice surfaces.
City council was told in 2017 that eliminating a rink results in savings of $2,000 to $3,000 for setup, takedown and maintenance. The funds are retained for use for other recreational initiatives.
The city is conducting an online survey about outdoor rinks at https://getinvolvedthunderbay.ca/outdoor-skating-rink. The survey is available until Feb. 29, 2020.
