Fears that property sale could see closure of Tasmania's last ice-skating rink

The recent listing for sale of the Glenorchy ice rink in Hobart's northern suburbs has prompted a campaign to keep the popular venue open.

Operating since the 1980s, Tasmania's only ice-skating rink is being offered for sale with regular users fearing the land could be redeveloped.

Fearing the loss, users have started a Facebook group - Save Tasmania’s Ice Sports and Recreation - and have enlisted the support of Australian Olympic Gold medal winner Steven Bradbury, American former world figure skating champion Nancy Kerrigan and Australian Olympic coach Kylie Fennell sending public messages of encouragement.

Tasmanian Premier Peter Gutwein has also pledged to look into its future, noting “the (Tasmanian) Government recognises its importance to figure skaters, ice hockey players and the general public.”

Built 40 years ago by the Kaitinis family, which still runs the venue (Janina Kaitinis is the current Ice Rink Manager), it was put up for sale after the death of the owner’s husband, and she now wants to retire.

It is being offered for sale at a price of more than $1.27 million, which includes the 780-square-metre building, with the ice rink, cafe, games area, party room and storeroom.

Surprised by the community support for the venue, sales agent Rod Cohen of NAI Harcourts Hobart, stated “there has been a lot of community support for it.

“They want to keep it as an ice rink, but we don’t know if that will eventuate. We’ve had a few inquiries and a couple of inspections, but I don’t know if someone will buy it to keep or convert it to another use or demolish it.”

If the venue does close it will leave Tasmania as the only state or territory in Australia without a rink. NSW, for instance, has eight of the national total of 21 rinks, Victoria has three, Queensland has five, and even Darwin has its own, started four years ago.

Ice Skating Australia’s Sport Development Committee Chairperson Kim Wilson said she’d been astonished by the support for the Save Tasmania’s Ice Sports and Recreation campaign.

Wilson advised “it would be awful to lose this rink.

“We wouldn’t have ice sports any more in Tasmania. Even if the government did agree to build a new rink, that would take time and if this closed, we’d lose all these skaters and knowledge and resources and have to start again.

“(It would be) devastating because skating is so important … there are so many opportunities for hockey players (and) figure skaters (and) it’s just great exercise, not just physically but mentally.”

Advising that said a number of national competitors train in Tasmania, Wilson added “we've had skaters who have achieved medals at national championships, now those skaters are very important, the little kids coming through look up to those skaters.

"If we lost this rink they would lose those networks."

Click here for more information on the sale.

Click here to access the Save Tasmania’s Ice Sports and Recreation page. 

Images courtesy of NAI Harcourts Hobart.