York News Times Press Release
Written by Parker Garlough
Students at York High School have teamed up with architecture students at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln in an effort to revive the York Skating Rink.
It started with a petition effort by Varian Stearns, which demonstrated that there was a significant group of York-area youth that were excited about the possibility of the rink reopening.
With the help of Jobs for America’s Graduates instructor Doreen Lopez, the students began discussions with a group of four UNL architecture students who are proposing a set of improvements to the building.
To turn their design proposal into a reality, they need a person to lead the charge. At a meeting Wednesday between UNL architecture students, YHS students and community leaders, UNL Associate Professor Jason Griffiths urged the people gathered at the meeting to identify a person who would be a good fit for that role.
“These projects will be successful if there’s somebody at the center of it, the person that coordinates all this, and I don’t know who that is yet. … Somebody with a real passion for it, somebody that loves roller skating, somebody loves the idea of the building,” Griffiths said.
The community might look to the Simic Rec Center as an example to emulate, City Administrator Sue Crawford suggested.
To celebrate Catholic Schools Week in 2019, St. Joseph school went to the York Skating Rink for a fun morning of skating. Scenes like this may become reality again as students at York High School have teamed up with architecture students at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln in an effort to revive the York Skating Rink. St. Joseph School
“The community rallied around (reopening a rink) in Superior, Nebraska, and then received funds from the Walter Scott Foundation to help with that project,” Crawford said. “She (a foundation person) sent me contacts, if it’d be interesting to visit there, or have them come, or have them Zoom in to talk a bit about their project.”
Interest in reopening shuttered skating rinks may be growing across Nebraska.
“There was a Facebook post in the last week from someone in Geneva asking if the Facebook world thought opening the Geneva roller rink again would be prudent,” County Commissioner Deb Robertson said.
Renovating the building is, from an architectural standpoint, feasible.
“Are the bones of the building any good?” Griffiths asked.
In his assessment, the answer was an enthusiastic yes.
It’s also feasible from a floodplain regulation standpoint.
“I had Dan (Aude), the floodplain person, check the basic premise of, can we rework on this building?” Crawford said. “(He said) yes, so we have that basic answer.”
The UNL architecture students presented their design ideas for the rink and sought feedback to improve their plans.
“When we come away from this, we’ll get a better idea of how to refine our ideas and take the project to another stage,” Griffiths said.
One element of their plan is to beautify the entrance.
They proposed a series of arches at the corner of the building, where people would enter.
“It really starts to introduce a very unique entryway, very inviting,” UNL student Paulina Garcia said. “You have, more so, a grand entrance feel.”
They also hope to add a mural on the south wall, or a window so that people could see skaters when they drove by.
“If there was a mural … I feel like it would add a lot,” YHS student Kai Epp said.
The architecture students have plans for the interior of the building as well. They proposed shortening the rink and rounding the edges.
“It’s very long, and it takes up the whole building right now,” UNL student Kate Allen said.
The proposed changes would increase the safety and ease of turning within the rink, and would also make room for more gathering spaces outside of the rink.
“We’ll have our lobby going into a storage locker and a lounge area, and … the interstitial space to allow people to go and communicate with one another, sit, relax,” UNL student Gavin Stelling said. “Then, in the back, we’d offer a multi-use space.”
Another option, though it was less popular, was leaving the rink shape unchanged and having foldable walls that could divide the rink into different spaces to accommodate non-skating events.
“These will be acoustic panels that will be suspended from the ceiling,” UNL student Tim Nguyen said. “It can retract to accommodate skating, or can expand.”
The design team proposed refinishing the floor, but not replacing it.
“We want to be cost efficient, but also we’re not going to keep it as it is, because we do want to make sure we refinish it and make sure it’s safe for skating,” Garcia said.
If the roller rink reopens, it will provide increased recreation opportunities for kids and teens.
“We were looking more into the programs and activities that are already available for students and young people in York, and it’s pretty limited,” Garcia said.
YHS students were excited about that possibility.
“I think redoing this is a huge thing for York in general, and it creates so much more opportunities,” Imerald Leonard said.
The opportunities for teens would go beyond just a fun place to hang out.
“I know a lot of us would want to work there,” Epp said.
Teens aren’t the only ones that could enjoy the rink.
“Senior skating sounds fun to me,” County Commissioner Deb Robertson said.
It’s a good sign that so many people are interested in the project, Griffiths said.
“The momentum for this is great,” Griffiths said.
There’s still a lot that needs to be done, though. Identifying a main coordinator for the project and finding a source of funding are some of the biggest next steps.
“The most optimistic estimate of something like this is that you break ground about this time next year,” Griffiths said.
