The Town of Milton and Milton Fire Department are asking residents to stay off the ice through a new campaign.
However, that has caused many to ask, why doesn’t the Town have a sanctioned outdoor rink? Many remember the rink at Rotary Park and are now asking what happened to it. The Town Councillor for Milton’s Ward 1, Kristina Tesser Derksen, explains what happened.
The issue was brought up at Monday night’s Town Council meeting. Councillor Tesser Derksen proposed using artificial ice surfaces if the temperature continues to be an issue. Unfortunately, Town Staff says that artificial ice could cost $300,000-$400,000 a season to maintain. Council has to decide if they are willing to take on that kind of cost at the expense of the taxpayers’ money.
There are talks about re-establishing an outdoor rink in Milton, but it wouldn’t be in place in time for this current winter season. Councillor Tesser Derksen says they may even need community volunteers or sponsors to help with the cost of maintaining the rink.
She adds that it’d still be a good idea to have an outdoor rink even when indoor rinks open. As a lifelong Miltonian, Tesser Derksen remembers her family going to Campbellville to take part in some outdoor skating and she’d love for residents to continue doing so in a safe manner.
The caveat is that residents still need to stay off of Milton’s retention / stormwater management ponds. They bring dangerous hazards to ice-skating as there could be pollution (such as shopping carts) that heat up the water in sunlight, causing the ice to melt. With the retention ponds being so close to the roads, there’s a chemical issue with road salt that affects the thickness of the ice. There’s even moving water underneath the ice that could lead to it being thinner than you expect. The Town Councillor for Milton’s Ward 4, Sameera Ali, also brought this up on episode 32 of ‘This Week in Milton‘.
