Tri Council to consider removing ice at Burk’s Falls arena for fall fair

The May 27, 2024, Tri Council meeting (Township of Armour, the Township of Ryerson, and the Village of Burk’s Falls), chaired by Burk’s Falls Mayor Chris Hope, met to discuss future plans affecting the Tri-Council jurisdictions.

The primary focus of the meeting was to hear progress reports on the continuity of several plans. 

The majority of the meeting was devoted to reviewing a submission from Graham Smith, manager of the Armour, Ryerson, Burk’s Falls Memorial Arena, and the feasibility of removing the ice surface in support of the 2024 Fall Fair.  

The report was submitted to explain to Tri Council partners a 2022 resolution from Burk’s Falls Council not to remove ice for the Fall Fair, but the Fair is asking for reconsideration.

Smith’s report details the various additional costs and risks of removing the ice surface, including the cancelation of existing contracts, additional salaries, and the overall potential damage to the ice-making facility for a relatively short period to house the fall fair. Alternatively, he proposed that the Fair could be well served by the existing rooms available in the arena without damaging or impacting the ice surface. His report recognized the importance of the Fall Fair but maintained that the Fair would be well served efficiently and with fiscal prudence if the ice surface remained intact. His report recommended four options for council consideration:

1. Remove the ice in April and cancel all summer ice and go back to just a winter rink offering ice from October to April annually. 
2. Continue to follow resolution No. 2022‐130 and keep the ice installed from July to April annually
3. Turn the ice plant to 25 degrees Fahrenheit, keep the facility dark and have staff serve the needs of the Karl Crozier Room patrons (including the Fall Fair), and work on some facility, grounds, and equipment maintenance until October when the ice would be opened again to the public.
4. Remove the ice for the Fall Fair, clean and prep the floor before and after the Fair and then have the ice prepared for the end of September for the fall ice season.

The council will review the options presented. The Township of Ryerson will host the next meeting, which will be held on August 26.

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