Oshawa wants to build outdoor rink next to north-end arena complex

A proposal to build an outdoor, mechanically cooled ice rink in north Oshawa is still on the table but considered “unlikely” to happen this year.

There has been growing public sentiment for adding an outdoor rink to Oshawa’s repertoire of recreation facilities, but climate change has made the proposal feasible for no more than a few weeks each winter, leaving the City with little choice but to investigate building a rink with a refrigerated ice plant.

As the costs of building from scratch are extremely high, City staff were charged with finding a location adjacent to an existing arena so they could tap into the ice plant already in place.

The answer is Delpark Homes Centre, which has all the requirements for the project, including an adjacent field to the east of the multi-rink complex that is of “suitable” size for the proposal.

The matter came before Council October 25 and staff were asked to report back with the costs and the feasibility of the project before the end of the year. While it is possible the outdoor rink is built as a pilot project this season Councillor Derek Giberson said it is far more likely the project gets pushed to 2022 budget deliberations this spring, for implementation in the 2022-23 season.