Is an artificial ice rink in Drenthe still feasible? A quick investigation should clarify this question this summer.
“It’s great that the province is getting started so quickly,” says Kees Vianen from Assen. The Member of Parliament for the VVD is, together with Alfred Schoenmaker of Sterk Lokaal, the great advocate of an ice rink in Drenthe. The pair managed to get the Drenthe Parliament to instruct the provincial government to investigate the possibilities in more detail.
150,000 visitors per year
Tijs Nederlof, the operator of an ice rink in Rotterdam, thinks he can realize an ice rink in Drenthe. He says he only needs a one-off contribution of about 3 million euros for this. With 150,000 visitors per year, the project could continue to support itself. That sounds like music to the ears of the provincial politicians, because the operation of an ice rink is always a source of concern.
Nederlof developed a special concept that makes it much cheaper to realize an ice rink than traditional ones, such as Kardinge in Groningen and Thialff in Heerenveen. In fact, it is a kind of roof over a 400 meter track. The track is therefore, because of the lack of stands, more suitable for recreational sports than for top sports. Training can take place.
An unnamed agency is conducting the investigation. The provincial government wants to know whether an ice rink as envisaged by the people of Rotterdam is indeed financially feasible in Drenthe and what a suitable location could be.
Solar panels
The energy costs must be kept within limits by generating the electricity with solar panels, but that also takes a lot of effort. These panels mainly generate power in the summer months, when the ice rink is closed, while power consumption is high in the winter. The question is whether and to what extent you can offset the costs in the winter against the revenues in the summer. That’s called salting.
“Apart from that, there must also be room on the power grid to supply that power,” adds Vianen. “This is also an important aspect in the question of where the ice rink should be located. The municipalities generally have an idea of whether there is still room on their power grid.”
Easily accessible
Vianen expects the researchers to ask the municipalities whether they are interested in building an ice rink in their area. According to him, the question is how they will contribute to its realization: by means of a contribution to the investment or in some other way. “The ice rink must of course be easily accessible. A municipality could also contribute to this. But all this has yet to be proven by the research.”
A delegation from the States of Drenthe was still on an excursion in Rotterdam at the beginning of March to see how the skating rink functions there. “It was just spring break and it was busy,” says Vianen. “I saw a lot of families with children who were having a good time. The hospitality industry was also busy. This strengthens my conviction that this can also be a nice low-threshold facility for Drenthe to enjoy skating.”