Councillor proposes upgrade for Edmonton city hall ice rink

The city should consider ways to keep the ice rink in front of city hall usable on more days during the winter, says Coun. Ben Henderson.

"It's exactly the days when it is the most attractive to use it that we've been having to close it down," Henderson said.

"You get a sunny day and it turns to mush. You can't use it if it's slush. There's a lot of those days now. Our winters have changed."

The fountain is slated for upkeep in the next 18 months as part of a larger $12.9-million project. That project includes facility renewal, mechanical and electrical upgrades of the city hall building itself, replacement of the tiles around the outdoor fountain and work on the pool itself.

Pipes for refrigeration were included when the fountain was built in 1994. But an ice plant was never added.

While the plaza work is being done, Henderson wantsto have those pipes inspected. Once he knows what shape they're in, and any repairs are done, he said he'll consider pushing for an ice plant.

There's no estimate of how much an ice plant would cost.

The tiles on the plaza around the fountain have required "recurring maintenance," said Adam Laughlin, deputy city manager for infrastructure services.

"You get to a certain point in time where it's time to replace, and that's where we're at with these tiles," he said.

Work on the fountain will include the base infrastructure needed so the fountain could be converted for other uses during the shoulder seasons of spring and fall, he said.

Any kind of multi-purpose surface would carry a "significant cost" and isn't on the books at this point, Laughlin said.