| By Anthony Radford
$100,000 package could make difference for skaters
A RESCUE package of up to $100,000 is all that will save Bendigo’s run down ice rink.
The Bendigo Ice Skating Association has nominated itself as insolvent, a position that will need to be ratified by individual user groups before becoming official.
BISA has asked the City of Greater Bendigo council for what is believed to be between $60,000 and $100,000 to keep it afloat.
The inadequate facility, a tin shed, has resulted in the rink melting, and it will cost more than $20,000 to repair.
Late last year the council offered BISA $40,000 to repair out-dated equipment and machinery.
In the meantime, the association is still waiting for a funding commitment from either local, state or federal governments to help build a new $5 million rink in either Kangaroo Flat or next to the Schweppes Centre in West Bendigo.
The council has thrown its support behind the plan,
after a feasibility study showed it would make a profit of $260,000 within five years.
However, no grant funding promises have been made and BISA is currently paying $60,000 a year rent for its Golden Square home.
BISA chairman Elaine McNamara said the future of the facility needed to be decided upon soon.
“We have met once with council and we are going to have another meeting with council prior to meeting with the members of the rink to see what council is prepared to do,” she said.
“As well as the maintenance and up-keep issues, we have people who haven’t paid their bills who have used the rink.
“That is not helping the situation.”
Mrs McNamara said the organisation may need to fold, even if council put forward the money.
“There has to come a time when we have to sit back and have a look,” she said.
“The problem is if we do that a lot of people are going to look for sport elsewhere if they haven’t got the rink.
“We have three virile clubs here, with a lot of people playing ice hockey, curling and ice skating.”
Mrs McNamara said a new facility would lower maintenance costs, prevent the ice melting, encourage new participants and attract major national and international events.
“If we had a new facility none of this would be a problem,” she said.
“We are having discussions about the new facility to see if it can be built.
“We have to go through council to get those grants.”
A new rink would have six Olympic sports under one roof.
The Australian Paralympic Association has said if a new facility was built in Bendigo, its wheelchair athletes would use it as training for the 2010 Winter Olympics.
Ice Hockey Australia is also interested in lobbying to have the hockey world championships in the city.
There are 144 user groups that use the rink.
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