Eleven years and counting

Eleven years and counting

This winter marked eleven years since the Mill Creek Park ice rink closed. To let a gem of a rink rot away is inexcusable. This is not just about a closed ice rink; it’s about community pride. It’s about saving the areas last outdoor public ice rink.

While I understand that MCP needs to be fiscally responsible, I believe reopening the rink is not only feasible but it is also within the Mill Creek Park Mission Statement, part of which says: “The mission of Mill Creek Park is to provide park, recreational, and open space facilities of regional significance … make improvements to MetroParks facilities, develop additional recreational opportunities.” This being said, the rink is of “regional significance” in that it is the only permanent outdoor ice rink in the region.

There are numerous outdoor ice rinks in Pittsburgh, where I currently reside. It’s hard for me to imagine that Youngstown cannot support one outdoor rink. With the impending Ice Zone closure, it’s possible that Youngstown will have no rink.

Nothing beats skating outdoors like nature intended it to be. It’s time for the MCP board to find a feasible way to re-open the rink. Last winter I wrote a letter to the editor in which I expressed what I believe to be a solid long-range plan to re-open the rink. I don’t even think an ice rink is in the recently released MCP long-range plans. I challenge the MCP board to have an open public meeting strictly on the ice rink.

Feel free to view my “Friends of Mill Creek Park Ice Rink” Facebook page.

Nicholas DuBos, Pittsburgh