Township of Chatsworth administration building. (Matt Hermiz/Bayshore Broadcasting News)
The Desboro Arena will not have an ice surface installed for a second straight winter.
Chatsworth council approved the recommendation at a recent special meeting after receiving an update about the status of the facility.
The Keady Arena will be the only indoor ice surface in Chatsworth during the winter of 2022/23.
Chatsworth Mayor Scott Mackey says council kept the door open for a potential return of ice at the Desboro Arena beyond next winter, once the township has a better idea of the overall demand for ice time.
He says the Keady Arena operated for about 38.5 hours per week last winter, short of the capacity it could handle. However, Mackey says it’s been really difficult to gauge the amount of ice time the municipality requires the past couple of years because of Covid regulations, which limited indoor sports participation.
“There was some icemaking equipment that could have been transferred from the Desboro Arena to the Keady Arena, but council made the decision that they don’t want to do anything with any of that yet until there is a clear idea about the amount of ice time that’s going to be required,” says Mackey.
In order for ice to return at the Desboro Arena, some necessary upgrades would need to be completed first to the mechanical room and zamboni room.
A contractor provided the township with a $350,000 cost estimate to address those concerns identified in a 2018 Building Conditions Assessment prepared by WSP Engineering.
The 2018 engineer’s report also projected the end-of-useful life for the rink would be around 10 years away (2028) and outlined options for the township. They ranged from undertaking significant repairs costing between $1.6-million to $2.5-million, decomissioning the ice plant and re-purposing the facility, or closing it outright.
“We see value in the building. We want to continue to have that building in the Township of Chatsworth,” Mackey assures. “The big question is: do we need to have ice in it?”
Councillors also directed staff at their July 20 meeting to bring back a report on alternate, non-ice uses for the Desboro Arena.
“Indoor soccer, lacrosse, pickleball, lawn bowling, all of those sorts of non-ice related activities. We’re trying to figure out what that use could be,” says Mackey. “But we’re not wanting to put a final nail in any coffin yet (for ice) until we get a clearer untderstanding about what the ice needs of the township are going to be.
There have been some vocal residents in the Desboro area who have voiced displeasure about the township’s plan, and have been pressing for the return of ice at the Desboro Arena.
“But we have to be able to justify the expense with the overall ice usage,” Mackey says. “That’s what the new council is going to have to determine.”