Future of Belltown Dome ice rink uncertain, says councillor

Despite living across from the Belltown Dome, Russell Latham has an outdoor rink in his own backyard — and says it's proven more reliable than the city ice pad.

"Sad to say, yes, the ice in my backyard is more consistent than the one in the dome," Latham said on Saturday.

"Even though it's raining and maybe plus one today."

The dome, located just west of Britannia Beach, is typically used for ice skating in the winter — but this season, it's barely been operational. 

Poor ice conditions have led to skating at the dome being cancelled on "a few occasions" for safety reasons, said Dan Chenier, the City of Ottawa's general manager of recreation, cultural and facilities services, in a statement. 

The city decided to transition the dome from a refrigerated arena this winter to a "natural ice surface," meaning that the conditions of the ice vary based on the temperature.  

Chenier previously told CBC the ice plant there was nearing the end of its life, along with "other critical mechanical and structural elements of the facility." 

Though it's been cold, Chenier says there's been increased humidity inside the dome, and without a proper ventilation system to manage it, the ice gets too soft.

Its recent unpredictability has locals losing faith in what was once a staple in the community. 

"It's disappointing. It's a heritage facility. We don't know what the city is going to do with it next … but its days as a rink really are numbered," said Alex Cullen, president of the Belltown Neighbours Association. 

Local teams struggling

Since it was established in 1967, the Belltown Dome has been a hub for recreational activities and has attracted hockey teams from around the city.

The West End Hockey League was one of the groups that relied on it, and president Ben Lee said he's not surprised by the recent closures.

The kids in his league used the Belltown Dome for over 10 years to get extra ice time to help with their development. Lee estimates his league used the ice for upwards of 500 hours per hockey season. 

But with no guarantee of usable ice this winter, that hasn't been possible, he said.

"There's no other opportunities for them. They're struggling and so we can't help them. The city can't help them. They're kind of left on their own and to go find extra development opportunities through private sources," said Lee.

"The issue is that the city has done nothing to replace it or put any significant plans or dollars to replace the loss of this prime ice time."

Future of the dome

Bay ward Coun. Theresa Kavanagh said she's put a notice of motion forward to the city's community services committee to discuss the future of the site. 

"We want it to be as useful as possible. It's already a big disappointment that it's not a refrigerated system anymore … so this is another problem," she said. 

The refrigeration system is too expensive to replace, Kavanagh said, with an estimated cost of $1.7 million for just the ice plant.

But she wants to explore possibilities for what the site could look like. 

"There's different choices and different options.. and we're certainly exploring them," she added.

Kavanagh said her motion is expected to be discussed at a committee meeting at the end of February.