8.6. SR 12-07-2015 - Laserfiche WebLink

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Plans and Specifications Community Center Feasibility Plan Page 3 of 11 Because parks and recreation facilities are essential to the city's identity and to the quality of life for residents, a strategic approach to protecting and cultivating these assets for the future is vital. The strategic approach that the City has recently taken is the Parks and Recreation Master Plan, adopted by City Council in June of 2015. The master plan is intended to provide direction for the City Council, the Parks and Recreation Commission, and City staff to guide them in strategic decision making that will impact the parks and recreation system. Whether allocating resources for maintenance, building a trail, installing a playground, protecting riverfront land, or developing the next season's recreation program offerings, the plan offers guidance. The plan outlined the need for a Community Center Feasibility Study as noted in the Parks and Recreation Master Plan on page 43; "Conduct a Comprehensive Recreation Facilities Study to evaluate the Activity Center (55+), the Ice Arena, Trott Brook Barn, and Lions Park Center to determine if they should be renovated, replaced on their current site, or consolidated into a centrally located facility." Elk River Arena Elk River's current ice arena is located next to the Elk River High School. The Barn, as it is affectionately known, was built in the early 1970's primarily with volunteers from the Elk River Youth Hockey Association. In the early 1980's, The Barn was remodeled with updated locker rooms, new bathrooms, and a new lobby added to the south end of the building. A new ice resurfacer room and a new ice plant room were also added along the east side of the rink. In 1981 the rink went from natural ice to artificial ice when a direct refrigeration system was installed along with a concrete slab with cooling pipes. About six years after the rink floor was completed, the pipes in the floor began to deteriorate causing refrigeration leaks and repairs were made as needed. In 2004, the floor and refrigerant piping were completely repaired. In 1995 the Youth Hockey Association approached the City to add a second sheet of ice. A task force was established to determine costs and the needs of the community before construction began in 1996. In January of 1997 the City took over ownership of the facility and the second, Olympic -sized (200x100) ice sheet opened. Since that time, the arena had numerous improvements, including a new dehumidifier and heat in the Olympic Rink, a new dehumidifier in The Barn, new bleachers and lighting in both rinks, new boilers, and other miscellaneous equipment throughout the building. However, even with these upgrades the building has not kept pace with capital improvements, most notably the two ice plants. Both ice plants are well over 30 years old and are at the end of their expected life cycle. Both plants are direct systems with R22 refrigerant. In 2012, a study was performed to review building needs, which included: ■ Replacement of The Barn roof ■ Replace HVAC for The Barn locker rooms ■ Replace front doors of the building ■ Exhaust system for make-up air for charging the Zamboni/resurfacer batteries ■ Freon detector for The Barn ice plant room ■ Replace infrared heating system in The Barn over bleachers ■ Replace both ice plants with one central ice plant to operate both sheets of ice ■ Repair cracks and voids in the building structure ■ Repair and replace, as needed, rubber roofing for Olympic Rink locker rooms November 14, 2015