Iconic Culver Ice Arena Forced to Close
By Stephen Hadland
Observer Publisher
The Iconic Culver Ice Arena is being forced to close its doors after 50 years by the owners who have already leased the property to a new tenant.
Currently the property owners are forcing the rink's closure on February 2.
Sources have told the Observer that the owners, a three -generation family from Santa Clara County, have leased the facility to Planet Granite, out of Northern California, a recreational company that offers rock climbing, yoga and a fitness center.
Without naming the specific location they have the announcement of a "new West Los Angeles facility" posted on their website heralding the arrival with the following statement, "We just couldn't hold back this exciting news! We have already begun dreaming of what we can do with this amazing space, offering climbing, yoga and fitness in this 31,000 sq ft building! As if that building isn't big enough, we're planning to add on 5,000 sq ft outside! That gives us over 36,000 sq ft of climbing yoga & fitness in West LA!
A group of concerned residents plans to take their cause to the city council on Monday night.
The "Save our Ice Rink group has currently collected more than 2600 signatures on a petition to save the rink and plans to present their petition to the Culver City Council asking the city council to help n any way they possibly can.
The group is encouraging residents to come and show their support Monday night. They accent their plea with "Moms and dads bring your kids; teachers and faculty bring your students, and skating and hockey enthusiasts of all heights and ages, please join us!
The Save Our Ice Rink group goes on to state their concerns, "Our ice rink, which sits in the heart of screenland, has served thousands of skaters almost every day of every year for the past 52 years, since its inception in 1961. "Little ones begin their Olympic dreams here, preteens and teenagers have a fun and safe place to hang out, parents and kids celebrate birthdays, schools and summer camps come for a skate, and adults take a skate down memory lane. Whether you're just a beginning skater, figure skater or hockey player, this rink has been here for you. People from all over the city and around the world have skated here and thought of Culver Ice Arena as home.
"The rink's value to the community is immeasurable. It is priceless. There are very few remaining recreational facilities left on the West Side and while Culver City is getting bigger and more sophisticated by the day, there is still enough space to keep the things that make raising children here rewarding and magical. It's a big enough town for our future and our past.
"It's impossible to imagine Los Angeles and Culver City without an ice rink."
It is unclear what, if any action the council can take. With the city still running at a deficit declaring Eminent domain and taking the property for public use does not appear to be a viable option.
The group has a website at: http://www.saveculverice.org/. The petition site is located on the web at: http://www.thepetitionsite.com/990/371/335/save-the-ice-rink-in-culver-city/ with Twitter @SaveCulverIce and a Facebook Page at : https://www.facebook.com/saveculverice.
Reader Comments1 — 5 of 6
CharlesHuang writes:
@FITDIVA: your statements are false. Culver city Ice Arena is a bustling place. There definitely is a need and it definitely serves a purpose. Rockclimbing on the other hand, with monthly membership fees of upwards of $60/month I cannot say so. UCLA has rockclimbing walls, there are rocks in our national parks that people climb... so to say that the rink is closing because it has not succeeded and there is no need for it is false. Their rent nearly doubled to 60k/month.
01/28/2014, 10:27 am
merle writes:
The ice rink is a treasure, our year long winter. Have rock climbing too-- Just not at the home of the ice rink. There are many other opportunities for Planet Granite. BTW: Planet Granite is a novelty at first. My son is 22 and did both, Culver ice and Planet Granite! He votes to keep Culver Ice by a long shot. He says $60 a month for Planet Granite is too much. You need spotters and workers don't help, so novelty wears off. Save Culver Ice!
01/24/2014, 9:45 pm
Fitdiva writes:
I used the rink once to skate otherwise I vote there. For all those upset by the closing, think, when was the last time you put on skates and used the rink? The youth of today are generaton: UNFIT. Obviously they don't ice skate if they did maybe the rink wouldn't be closing. The new business will offer what the rink could not, VARIETY and create more interest than the rink did in the process. CC used to have a rink for roller skating alas,that too is gone. Time marches on.
01/18/2014, 2:18 pm
mike writes:
Actually I think that new place sounds pretty nice. The ice skating rink was great and I will always have some fun memories there but everything in life has its time. The new business coming in sounds like it's going to not only be a great fit for culver city residents, but for the people of the westside.
01/13/2014, 4:11 am
Bee writes:
The Culver Ice Rink is one of the very special treasures that make Culver City unique. It provides our children with a great recreational alternative to video games, and brings a wide cross section of people together. I pray that a solution can be found to this sad state of affairs. Surely Planet Granite can appreciate what our beloved ice skating rink means to so many. Once lost, it will be gone forever. We must work together to find the best solution to this situation.
01/11/2014, 8:07 pm