(La Porte, IN) - A refrigerated ice rink with skate rental in downtown La Porte is open for the second year in a row.

The vision is to mirror the success in communities like Valparaiso where, eventually, a shelter was built around a temporary rink downtown to make the site a permanent year-round attraction.

 

Last year, the city for one month beginning in January rented a 60 x 90-foot rink from Wayne Seybold, a former U.S. Olympic skater, to gauge community support for ice skating. 

 

The cost of rent and other expenses was nearly $70,000, said La Porte Park Department Superintendent Mark Schreiber. Officials were pleased enough with the turnout to later purchase the rink for $160,000 with help from a grant, donations, and sponsorships, he said.

 

The recently assembled rink at Monroe and State streets is open from 4 p.m. to 10 p.m. on Fridays and Saturdays from 10 a.m. to 10 p.m.  It’s also open on Sundays from 1 p.m. to 8 p.m., with Schreiber noting that weekday hours will be added for students during Christmas break.

 

The rink will be open until the end of January but could be made available into February depending on demand, he said. The cost to skate is $5 with online reservations and payment strongly urged for convenience. Skate rental is $3.

 

“Hopefully, we just see a lot of families, a lot of groups wanting to come out and enjoy it,” he said.

 

Christmas break hours are:

Tuesday, Dec. 20 4-8 p.m.

Wednesday, Dec. 21 1-8 p.m.

Thursday, Dec. 22 1-8 p.m.

Friday, Dec. 23 1-10 p.m.

Saturday, Dec. 24 10 a.m.-4 p.m.

Monday, Dec. 26 1-8 p.m.

Tuesday, Dec. 27 1-8 p.m.

Wednesday, Dec. 28 1-8 p.m.

Thursday, Dec. 29 1-8 p.m.

Friday, Dec. 30 1-10 p.m.

Saturday, Dec. 31 10 a.m.-4 p.m.

Monday, Jan. 2 1-8 p.m.

Tuesday, Jan. 3 1-8 p.m.