FALMOUTH YOUTH HOCKEY ANNOUNCES FUTURE SITE AND CONSTRUCTION OF ENVIRONMENTALLY FRIENDLY ICE ARENA FACILITY
5.5 Million Dollar Construction Project to Give Falmouth Residents a Modern Year-Round Ice Arena
Falmouth, MA – February 1, 2010 - Falmouth Youth Hockey League, Inc. has reached an agreement with the Steamship Authority (SSA) that will enable it to acquire property to construct a state-of-the-art ice arena facility to serve the Falmouth community.Falmouth Ice Arena.jpg The proposed 60,000 square foot facility, with expected seating for more than 700, will be built on lot 10, Technology Park Dr. (located off of Thomas B. Landers Road near Route 28)FYHL ConceptSite Plan.pdf, and represents a $5.5 million investment in the community.
“We have outgrown our current facility and with such limited places to build an ice rink in Falmouth, we are extremely pleased to have found a location that will benefit children, their parents and the community as a whole,” said Paul Moore, President, Falmouth Youth Hockey League, Inc. “The future home of Falmouth Youth Hockey is more centrally located and will have easy access to the highway. Most importantly, it will give our kids and adults the state-of-the-art facility they deserve.”
Last year the SSA entered into a purchase and sale agreement to buy the property off Thomas B. Landers Road along with another much larger parcel (lot 9) across Technology Park Drive. The SSA’s plans are to construct a parking facility on lot 9 so that it can close down its other parking lots on Gifford Street in Falmouth and on Route 28A in Cataumet to relieve traffic congestion there. The SSA also intended to hold onto lot 10 for possible future parking needs, but approached Falmouth Youth Hockey to see whether they might be interested in it as a site for their new rink in exchange for Falmouth Youth Hockey’s property on Skating Lane where its current rink is located.
“The new location is ideal,” said Mr. Moore, and because the site is almost seven acres, the proposed facility will have a full size rink that will be five feet wider than the current ice rink and will contain a separate half rink to be used for practices, events and community skating.FYHL Rink Layout.pdf Upgrades will also include dedicated dressing rooms for both boys and girls hockey teams along with separate officiating rooms. The Board of Governors for Falmouth Youth Hockey has also mandated that the new facility meet the latest efficiency and environmental standards.
“Falmouth’s new ice arena will not only be an attractive, comfortable venue for all types of skating, it will exemplify a high level of energy and environmental stewardship,” said Paul Stewart of Arena Design Engineers, the design firm retained for the new ice arena project. “No stone has been left unturned and after extensive research and design we believe that the new Falmouth Ice Arena will use half of the energy of a standard facility of its type,” said Mr. Stewart.
To make those goals a reality the new ice arena will employ a state-of-the-art waste heat recovery system for space heating, snowmelt and hot water used for ice resurfacing. The structure will utilize a highly efficient lighting and plumbing architecture and will use no Chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs) in the cooling process among many other energy saving initiatives.
Nevertheless, Mr. Moore knows that many challenges lie ahead before the new rink will become a reality. Not only will the new site be subject to an extensive review process, but the SSA can only agree to the exchange of properties if it can make full use of the Falmouth Youth Hockey League’s Skating Lane property for additional parking. “The Falmouth community’s feelings about some additional SSA parking on Palmer Avenue will also have to be considered,” said SSA General Manager Wayne Lamson, “but I want to assure them that we will continue to try to mitigate our impact on traffic in that area.”
The goal of Falmouth Youth Hockey and the SSA is to exchange the properties in March 2011, after all of the permits are acquired for the new ice arena facility. At that time the SSA will also pay Falmouth Youth Hockey an additional $1.6 million, which will be a significant contribution to the construction and operation of a new ice arena facility. In addition, the SSA will allow Falmouth Youth Hockey to continue to use its current rink rent free until March 2012, when the new ice arena facility is expected to be completed, so there will be no disruption to its ice arena programs.
Established in 1967, Falmouth Youth Hockey League, Inc. is a certified 501c(3) non-profit organization that provides early exposure to skating and hockey for children of all economic backgrounds. In the coming weeks and months Falmouth Youth Hockey will be launching a fundraising campaign to raise funds for the construction of the facility, currently estimated at $5.5 million.
