Another season of outdoor family fun on skates has opened in Penticton, thanks to the efforts of volunteers from across the region.
Activate Penticton, the group responsible for overseeing the city’s outdoor rink next to city hall, worked through the autumn months to get the facility ready and on Dec. 5, it finally did.
Saturday, however, was the first time families could lace up their skates on a weekend and test out the ice for themselves.
“I wasn’t on the ice last year, so to finally spend the day with my son on here is amazing,” said one Penticton father, who was joined by his six-year-old.
Drew Barnes, the president of Activate Penticton, told the Western News last week that the final cost of the rink was $1.1 million. It first opened in February 2022.
But he also acknowledged the dedicated volunteers who helped make it all a reality. Dozens of people, from fundraisers to ice builders and event coordinators, signed up to be part of the project’s efforts.
The group raised more than $800,000 to construct the facility, with other cash for washrooms and parking coming from the city.
Penticton’s outdoor rink, located on 107 Martin Street, is open from 8 a.m. to 9 p.m., seven days a week. It will also host the B.C. Hockey League’s 60th-anniversary all-star game on Jan. 21.
In a Facebook video from this week, the city of Penticton thanked all of Activate Penticton’s volunteers for their efforts in getting the 40 by 14-metre rink ready for the next several months. It can operate in temperatures up to 10 C.
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