On Wednesday there will be a public meeting on the design phase of a new Hamill Ice Rink on Wednesday, May 5 at 11:00am.
To access the meeting, click here:
https://www.greenwichct.gov/AgendaCenter/ViewFile/Agenda/_05052021-4730
During last week’s Park & Rec board meeting director Joe Siciliano said as far as a timeline, it was “right in the beginning of site plan work” and $300,000 out of $400,000 of available funds are dedicated to a design vendor called The SLAM Collaborative.
“We selected that group several months back and now we’re in a contract with them. They’re preparing site plan work, MI work so we can go to P&Z for 30% site plan approval.”
He said they were requesting $950,000 for the second part of the design phase of the skating rink.
In 2023-2024 there is a request for $17 million to build a rink.
Siciliano said a committee is formed that includes Parks & Rec board members, user groups including the Greenwich Skating Club, GHS Athletic Director, the Greenwich Skating School, Windy Hill Skating Club.
Siciliano said Wednesday would be the first meeting as a committee with the vendor SLAM, who will present siting alternatives. That will be followed by committee discussion, and lastly there will be time for public comments.
He said there was resistance from the BOC (budget oversight committee), which he attributed to misinformation, including the rumor that the new facility would be “a regional rink.”
“We do invite other users form Fairfield County to the rink. we have high school. We have other club sports that bring in other teams. Even down to Greenwich Blues or Cardinal Skating Club — they bring in other teams. That’s not really a regional operation. That’s a hometown operation that invites other users to come in and use the ice with them, play against them, compete against them in figure skating competitions. It’s not regional. There’s no reciprocal that they can book any time – it’s by invite. That’s some of the misinformation that’s out there.”
“We’re trying to correct it,” he said.
“We do have $400,000 to start the process and we estimate it will take about 6 months to get through P&Z for 30% approval – and that will be MI, 30% approval and Architectural Review Committee will probably eat up about 6 months of our time.”
Scott Johnson said