The District of Houston says it continues to evaluate options to ease the impact on arena users from the delay in having ice put in at the Claude Parish Memorial Arena.
A delay in equipment arriving for the new refrigeration plant has now pushed back the ice in-service date to Dec. 4.
And that’s meant problems for user groups, including the Houston Figure Skating Club which has moved its hosting of a major event, the Kla How Ya, which attracts skaters from all over the region, to Smithers.
“Any options will be presented to council for consideration,” says District of Houston chief administrative officer Gerald Pinchbeck.
“User groups will be advised of any extension to the free dry floor times and any other programs as they are decided upon.”
Prior to news of the delay until Dec. 4, council had approved setting aside an amount as an internal charge to have staff at the arena at night so that user groups could use the bare arena floor for training or other purposes at no cost.
As of Oct. 31, groups will have used the arena floor for 31 hours, said Pinchbeck.
This “amounts to $635.50 of billable time under the feeds bylaw. Council has previously approved up to $2,460 in total free dry floor usage,” he said.
The internal expenditure of $2,460 would cover the cost of having an attendant on site for 20 hours a week (four hours a night for five nights) over six weeks.