West Vancouver is skating toward a new public ice complex to house the district’s growing community of winter sport enthusiasts.
At a meeting Monday, council voted to establish a district-led “advisory roundtable” to develop a plan and budget for the planning process of a new, multi-sheet ice complex. The group will consist of municipal staff, directors from Enhance West Van and community members.
Staff are set to report back to council in the fall once the project plan and budget are complete.
Work to expand the district’s ice facilities began in 2013 when Enhance West Van, a not-for-profit society that provides joint oversight of West Van's community centre, aquatic centre and arena, launched a volunteer-led task force which presented a vision plan to council in 2017.
In 2018, council approved the replacement of the ice arena floor at the 786 22nd St. rink due to leaking. That same year council also OK'd a steering committee to determine steps for the vision plan.
But movement stalled with the fall 2018 municipal election and the onset of the pandemic in 2020, according to a staff report. A working committee to continue the push for a new ice complex was re-established in August 2024.
There’s a surge of interest for ice sports in the district, but its lone facility hasn’t kept pace, said Peter Katevatis, board chair with Enhance West Van.
“It’s no longer meeting the basic needs of our community,” he said. “The result: fewer opportunities. Limited access to ice means kids are on wait lists. Teens are leaving the community to find ice time. Public skating time is being reduced.”
West Van has the lowest rink-to-population ratio in Canada for any sizable municipality, Katevatis said. Multiple groups are competing for ice time, he added, including figure skaters, along with multiple hockey teams for adults and youth.
“Minor hockey is a clear example of this pressure. They currently have a wait list of two full teams who can’t participate simply because there’s no ice time available,” Katevatis said. Additionally, four of their teams plus goalies are practicing in arenas outside West Vancouver and in some cases even in Burnaby, just to play.”
He stressed that the current arena must stay open during construction of the new rinks.
New complex won't displace other facilities, mayor says
Coun. Linda Watt said skating is a fundamental element of Canadian life and one of the most accessible activities during winter.
“As somebody who came from the Toronto area, I found it astonishing when I moved here with my young kids, who are humiliated as young adults that they don’t skate,” she said. “We got them on the ice a little when we moved here. But with the pressure on that arena, there just isn’t the time and space for young people, old people, to get out there.”
While many youth have had the “great fortune” to skate at Hollyburn Country Club, Coun. Christine Cassidy said that one shouldn’t have to be a member at a private club to have the opportunity to excel in ice sports.
Coun. Peter Lambur questioned if the expanded skating facilities could be accommodated among the other public amenities in the area.
Mayor Mark Sager responded that the new ice complex won't displace either the seniors centre or the tennis facility.
“We will find a way to achieve this without interrupting other recreational communities,” he said.
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