Selectmen back additional rink
Published on October 26th, 2005
The town's Selectmen will pursue a daring renovation plan that would expend an estimated $3.5 million for a second ice-rink at the Stoneham Arena and shut-down the Stoneham Oaks golf course to create a driving range.
Pitched by Selectmen Chair Bob Sweeney and George Seibold during the board's annual goals meeting at the Senior Center recently, the ambitious redevelopment plan carried the potential to net at least $500,000 in revenues for the rink changes alone, the duo argued.
"We have the best located rink in the state. I think the way it's going with girls hockey, it would be worth looking into revenue-wise," Seibold reasoned, referring to a surge in the number of girl's hockey teams across the state.
"For the revenues from the second rink, we're talking about $500,000 net, which is more than Unicorn [golf course] makes us," Sweeney added.
According to the proposal, the expansion of the rink would extend outwards towards the current Stoneham Oaks golf course. With the renovation plan currently calling for the demolition of the par 3 golf course's club house, Sweeney proposed reconfiguring the remaining area for a driving range.
However, in order to pave an access way to that new driving range which least disturbs surrounding neighborhoods, Stoneham officials would have to negotiate with the City of Woburn and the owners of the Unicorn office park for permission to use a patch of land adjacent to the commercial facility.
"The par 3 would be gone It's been robbed three times and it's losing money on a regular basis. We just need to convince the public," said Seibold.
"This area would be the cheapest place to put it because there's no ledge and it's relatively flat," proposed Sweeney, speaking of what he considered the ideal parcel for a driving range. "And the best place for us to get access there, without major excavation, would require us to get an easement from the office park."
Explaining his primary reason for choosing that specific location for the driving range - outside of development costs - the Selectmen Chair believed that area neighbors, who have historically opposed a driving range based on traffic concerns, would go along with the plan.
While ultimately endorsing the two-part redevelopment, Selectman John DePinto questioned the $3.5 million rink estimate obtained by Seibold. Specifically, the first-term board member expressed doubts that the person responsible for drafting the plan was familiar with Massachusetts construction costs.
In addition, DePinto also worried about how concrete the potential revenue estimates were, especially since the consultant's $500,000 figure was preceded by cautionary language.
"It looks like this guy has never done anything east of Colorado. Does he know how much it costs to build here?" DePinto asked. "My other concern is this first paragraph. It says 'may [generate $500,000]', and that's a serious word."
Responding to the concerns, Sweeney claimed that evidence supporting the huge demand for more skating facilities could be seen both within and around Stoneham.
"Let's go back four years ago. What was going to be proposed where the [Boston Regional Medical Center] is? Two rinks. So there has to be some sort of demand for this," the Selectmen Chair concluded.
According to Town Administrator Ron Florino, who also backed the proposal, the flurry of activity at the Stoneham Arena to date also bolstered the two Selectmen's contention. Specifically, Florino referred to the Arena's financial returns last year, which netted the town $45,000 - the first time a positive gain was made at the facility in years.
The Town Administrator further argued that the multi-million dollar renovation would provide the town with a chance to make necessary repairs and improvements to the facility. In doing so, Florino said, the financial picture at the skating facility could turn even rosier, as operational expense savings could be realized through adaptations to make the Arena more energy efficient.
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