#4 Request for City funding to build a new ice rinkCITY MANAGER DEPARTMENT MEMORANDUM
October 20, 2009
TO: City Council
FROM: Eric J. Levitt, City Manager
SUBJECT: Discussion/possible action on request from Janesville Youth
Hockey Building Committee for City Council consideration on
City providing funding to build new ice rink.
Summary
In 2009, the City has been evaluating issues and possible deficiencies at the ice
rink. The areas that need attention include areas such as the compressor and
cooling system for the ice. During the spring of 2009, the City experienced
several small failures and one large failure of the ice cooling system.
A group of individuals proposed, during the spring, that the City consider building
a new rink rather than renovating the current rink. This group is currently within
the Janesville Youth Hockey Association.
Request
Janesville Youth Hockey Association has proposed that the City of Janesville
provide $2 million in seed funding and potentially an additional $500,000 to build
a phased two sheet rink. The Association would provide $2.5 million through
donations to build the rink.
Possible Motion
I move that the City Council approve providing up to $2 million in funds for a new
ice rink if the Janesville Youth Hockey Association can receive commitments of a
minimum of $1.5 million in funding by December 1, 2009.
City Manager Recommendation
(Update since the September 14, 2009 Meeting)
The City Manager has worked with the Community Development Director and the
Youth Hockey Association Building Committee Chair. One issue that was
brought forward at the previous meeting was the location of a new rink. We
evaluated multiple possible locations and concluded that the three best locations
were:
1. The location identified adjacent to the Youth Sports Complex.
2. Locate a new rink at the Industrial Park on the South Side of Janesville.
3. Add a second sheet of ice to the existing rink location.
If the City partners with the community groups to build a new rink, the South
Industrial Park location appears to be the best location due two relatively new
factors that have come forward.
A. The City is currently evaluating locations for a Central Fire Station. One
potential location that is being evaluated is the current ice rink location.
One benefit of this location is that the land is currently owned by the City.
B. The South Industrial Park location would provide opportunities for the
Beloit Youth Hockey Association to consider programming during the off-
season at a minimum due to the proximity.
Background
In 2008, the City began evaluating costs to improve the rink in response to the
potential to attract a Junior A hockey team to Janesville. The initial estimates for
full improvements to the rink ranged in costs from $1 million to over $2 million,
but averaged out to approximately $1.5 million.
As the City negotiated the contract with the Junior A team (now named the
Janesville Jets), the City Council authorized $200,000 in improvements to the
rink. Concurrently, the rink experienced a variety of problems this spring and
was shut down for almost 2 months fixing issues with the ice cooling system.
A group of Janesville residents, now affiliated with the Janesville Youth Hockey
Association, began developing a proposal to form a partnership with the City of
Janesville to build a new rink. The proposed rink is located adjacent to the Youth
Sports Complex and built on 11 acres of City owned land.
The proposed partnership evolved over the summer and has evolved into the
attached proposal. The attached proposal has the following elements:
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The building and one sheet of ice would cost approximately $4 million (not
including land).
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The expansion to a second sheet of ice would cost approximately an
additional $1 million.
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The City is requested to commit an initial $2 million and an additional
$500,000 when funds are raised for a second sheet of ice.
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The proposal projects the City to close its current $85,000 actual subsidy
to a $0 operational subsidy when 2 sheets of ice are operational.
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The proposal discusses the expansion of users at the current rink over the
last year
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The ownership of the rink would be initially the Janesville Youth Hockey
Club, but would be sold to the City of Janesville for $100 at the completion
of 5 years of operation (the City would operate the rink during the 5 years).
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