Berkley Ice Rink Sharpens Plan to Stay Open

The has been through a few rocky years, but officials are advancing plans to generate more revenue for the aging facility. The message is clear: The rink is open for business.

"There's been rumors for a long time – is the arena going to be open? What's going on with the arena?" said Parks & Recreation Department manager Tom Colwell, who initiated a three-year plan in 2009 to help the facility become self-sustaining.

Under the plan, the department has taken over ice scheduling and worked to generate revenue through sources such as the Learn to Skate and Sticks and Pucks programs, open ice time, concessions, room rentals and skating parties, Colwell said.

It also has focused on preventive maintenance of the building, which was built in 1974, with an addition in 1995, he said.

The crown jewel in the department's turnaround plan is to attract a tenant that would pay to use an all-seasons room inside the arena.

The space – currently used by medieval fighters, the robotics team and hockey squads for dry-land practice – would be called the FUNdamentals Training Center, Colwell said.

"We really believe a place like that is going to be a tremendously popular place to go train in the winter for the summer season," he said. "Those innovative ideas are what we need to move forward."

Rocky road

Colwell and his crew launched the three-year turnaround plan in 2009 after the arena lost its biggest client at the time, the Berkley Youth Hockey Association. The city examined whether to accept bids from third parties to run the facility, but it ultimately decided the Parks & Rec Department could do it more efficiently and voted to approve the plan.

Berkley Finance Director David Sabuda admitted that "2009-2010 was a pretty rough year, but we got through it.

"Council made the decision ... to keep (the arena) open, and until I hear anything different, it's staying open."

Once the plan was approved, Parks & Rec began seeking new clients and scheduling ice time, he said. Previously, youth groups had handled scheduling, which did not maximize the arena's revenue-generating capability, Sabuda said.

"We (now) know by hour who our customers are and when they're supposed to pay," he said.

That's important because the arena is funded through an enterprise fund, which means it is designed to make a profit, Sabuda said. When the arena doesn't bring in enough cash to cover its expenses, the city is forced to dip into other funds to cover the balance, he said.

"Most rinks don't pay for themselves," Sabuda said. "In most municipalities, money from the general fund is put into the rinks."

For example, between the 2005-06 and 2009-10 fiscal years, the following amounts were transferred from the general fund and recreation revolving fund to help run and maintain the Berkley facility, according to Sabuda:

• 2005-06: $10,000
• 2006-07: $79,000
• 2007-08: $0
• 2008-09: $70,000
• 2009-10: $117,000 (part of this amount went toward a balloon payment on debt, and part was a final payment on a bank loan used to make the building more energy efficient; $25,000 went to clean and repaint the arena)
• 2010-11: $25,000 (predicted)

"Right now, we're holding our own," Sabuda said.

But last year, the arena suffered another blow: the loss of the Royal Blades Figure Skating Club, which consolidated with Royal Oak due to declining membership and moved to .

"That was about 10 percent of the budget," said Colwell, who added that it wasn't the end of the arena's hiccups: "We had a furnace issue, then a boiler issue, then a Zamboni issue.

"We've got an old building that needs some love, it needs some attention," he said, adding that it's not practical for the city to continue dipping into the general fund and recreation revolving fund to help maintain the facility.

So, the city is focused on finding a tenant – whether it's golf, soccer, softball, baseball, gymnastics or the performing arts – to occupy the all-seasons space and provide a constant source of revenue.

"Eventually, we need to open a second revenue stream," Sabuda said. "But we won't spend a cent of money (to renovate the space) until we get a tenant."

"The utlization of that open space is key to that facility. That will help us pay the bills and maintain the facility."

Residents urged to use city's 'greatest secret'

While finding a tenant for the all-seasons room is an important part of the city's plan for the arena, officials said there's another key component: residents.

"Ultimately, what we need is the community to step up and come to open skating, come have party at the ice arena, come see a hockey game," Colwell said, espousing a use-it-or-lose it philosophy.

"I like to call it the greatest secret the city has to offer," he said. "And it's cheap. A family can go rent skates for two hours for relatively cheap for a night out."

Sabuda agreed.

"It makes everyone's home a little more valuable," he said. "It does provide an amenity that, if you live here, you can utilize."

There are bright spots: The Berkley-Ferndale Unified high school team, as well as former Red Wings player Petr Klima's group, the PK Warriors, use the arena's ice, Sabuda said.

"Hockey and ice skating are big sports in Michigan, and children should have the opportunity to play," Sabuda said.

That sentiment hit home for Huntington Woods resident Amy Haenick.

Haenick and daughter Ellie, 7 – who takes ice skating lessons at the rink – and son Evan, 4, went to an open skate at the arena on a recent snow day off of school and work.

"We love the arena, and we use it all the time," Haenick said.