Officers' Square renovations hit milestone with opening of new skating track

A controversial redevelopment of Officers' Square in Fredericton has hit a new milestone with the opening a skating track.

Fredericton Mayor Kate Rogers, councillors, and city staff laced up their skates Friday to be some of the first people to try out the new ice surface at the square located on the corner of Regent and Queen streets.

"The ice is really, really good. It's nice and hard. They've done a great job," said Coun. Bruce Grandy, minutes after taking his first couple of laps around the track.

"You can see the Zamboni just came off and as it gets flooded it's really smooth and there's no bumps in it or anything."

The constructionof the outdoor skating track is the latestphaseto be completed as part of the renovation of the downtown square.

The city acquired itfrom the provincial government in 2016, and in 2018 laid out plans to spend $8.9 million to rebuild the wall and wrought-iron fencing, and install a skating track and performing stage.

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The opening is a long-awaited milestone for the redevelopment of Officers Square.

Part of that plan, however, involved cutting down 19 mature trees, sparking intense public backlash.

The city ultimately agreed to save eight of the 19 trees, thoughheritage advocates remained strongly opposed to the replacementof the stone wall and wrought-iron fencing around the square, which was createdwhen the British established the site as a military barracks in 1785.

Result better because of public engagement: mayor

Rogers was a councillor whose ward included Officers' Square when the initial plan drew criticism from the public.

She said the feedback from residents promptedchanges to the plan, which she thinks will result in a better final product.

"Often it's really tense and really stressful when it's happening ... but always, the end product is better when you get the contribution from the public because they live in this space," she said.

For those who still might not be pleased with the renovations, Rogers said she hopes the end result will change their minds.

"There's certainly still people in the community that ... are still feeling the angst of this and what was lost, so I hope that that can be replaced with what will be gained."

Latest cost estimate climbs to $11M

As with other city projects, the estimated cost of Officers' Square has gone up from its original projection, and currently stands at $11 million, said Sean Lee, the city's assistant director of engineering and operations.

He said of that, the skating track cost about $1.5 million, including the cooling system, which works by pumpingsalty waterthrough pipes in the concrete to keep the ice frozen.

The city has used Officers' Square in past winters to create an outdoor rink by flooding part of the grounds.

But with climate change causing more unpredictable weather, it's become more difficult in recent years for staff to keep the outdoor rink frozen and open to skating.

"Witha chilled surface like this one, we're able to more consistently make ice ... so we should have more consistent ice there through the entire winter months and be able to maintain and have it open for the public to use," he said.

Lee said the city will resume work on the square next spring by planting sod andmore trees, and laying paver stones in sections where there's currently exposed dirt.

Final touches on the new performing stage and new lighting throughout the square are also planned before the project is finished, hopefully by July, Lee said.