YOUNGSTOWN Mill Creek Park to test snow machine for sled hill

The park lost $67,000 on the ice rink last year.
By IAN HILL
VINDICATOR STAFF WRITER
YOUNGSTOWN -- Snow is in the forecast for Mill Creek Park's Wick Recreation Area this winter.
In December, park staffers are going to test a machine that makes artificial snow on the Wick sledding hill, said Susan Dicken, park executive director. The machine would be used when there is not enough real snow on the hill and the outdoor temperature is 32 degrees or colder.
"If it works well, we'll have snow for the Christmas holiday," Dicken said.
Last winter's unseasonably high temperatures meant that sledders spent more time inside than rushing down a hill.
Dicken said that during an average winter, about 300 sledders use the hill each day.
The snow-making machine is part of the park's efforts to provide more winter activities. The park also is offering cross-country skiing this winter on the Par 3 golf course in Wick Recreation Area.
Wick Recreation Area is located at the corner of Bears Den and Old Furnace roads.
The course will be lighted for night skiing. Both sledding and cross-country skiing will be free.
Ice rink closed
While the sledding hill and the Par 3 golf course could be busy this winter, the Wick ice skating rink will be quiet. That's because the rink has been closed for the foreseeable future.
The park board decided to close the rink after finding leaks in the 11 miles of pipes that are part of the rink's ice chilling system. The pipes were leaking glycol, a refrigerant that park officials say is not a hazardous material and breaks down in soil.
The chilling system, which was installed in 1968, was expected to last about 20 or 30 years. Park officials are working with the Ohio Environmental Protection Agency to determine if the glycol will have an impact on the environment.
Dicken noted that the popularity of the rink has dropped off in recent years. The rink attracted between 5,000 and 7,000 skaters last year, she said.
About 28,000 skaters came to the rink when it first opened in 1968.
The rink costs about $112,000 to operate each year, Dicken said. She said last year, the park collected only $45,000 from the rink.
The cost of skating at the rink was $3.50 for a Mahoning County resident and $4.25 for a nonresident.
Dicken said the park board wasn't sure what it would do with the rink. The rink's warming house will be open this winter for sledders.
hill@vindy.com