Temporary Ice Skating Rink Plans Not Moving Forward In Greenwich

GREENWICH, CT — While residents will soon be able to stroll along Greenwich Avenue with a backdrop of holiday lights, plans for a temporary ice rink at the nearby Greenwich Commons park have been put on hold as the town continues to grapple with the coronavirus.

Plans for the proposed rink were presented to the Board of Selectmen during their meeting Thursday by resident Sebastian Dostmann on behalf of the Greenwich Community Projects Fund.

Though all three board members appeared to respond positively to the idea, First Selectman Fred Camillo has announced the plans will not be moving forward at this time. (To sign up for Greenwich breaking news alerts and more, click here.)

Barbara Heins, Camillo's executive assistant, confirmed the news Monday.

"Given the continuing increase in [coronavirus] cases statewide, regionally and in Greenwich," Heins said, "it was with an abundance of caution and concern for public health and safety that this decision was made."

In his weekly e-blast newsletter at the end of the week, Camillo noted a total of 1,312 residents have been diagnosed with the virus as of Friday, which represented an increase of 106 residents from the previous week.

"Given the continued spike, the state mandates and the potential health risks involved," Camillo said in the newsletter, "after consulting with town department heads, we are putting on hold the plans announced earlier this week for an outdoor ice skating venue at Greenwich Common."

Dostmann also confirmed Monday plans for the temporary rink had been put on hold in order to
"err on the side of caution."

"We've got that on hold and are exploring other options," Dostmann said, "and seeing if it might be something that's feasible for later in the winter or possibly even pushing it into next year."

Dostmann also noted he supported Camillo's decision to not move forward with the rink right now.

"I think we're all bummed out about it," Dostmann said, "but at the end of the day, we want everybody to be safe."

The proposal called for the temporary rink to be paid for through a donation from PepsiCo to the community projects fund, rather than through town funds, though he emphasized after the meeting nothing had been "signed, sealed and delivered" yet.

As proposed, the free rink would have operated every day from Nov. 27 through Jan. 18, Dostmann said. He also acknowledged last week it would be "a time crunch" to open the rink in November.

While the proposed rink will not be moving forward, at least for now, Dostmann said his other project in town, the "Let There Be Lights" initiative to bring holiday lights to Greenwich Avenue, was still running smoothly.

"We're doing great," Dostmann said. "We started putting [the lights] up last week. Rain dampened our efforts a little bit, but we were out last night and will be out every night until we get them all up, so we're excited."

Dostmann, who worked on the project with fellow resident Alyssa Keleshian Bonomo, said the plan is to have all the lights up and lit by Nov. 27, the day after Thanksgiving.

While there is no ceremony planned for that day, Dostmann said an announcement will go out around that time to let residents know the lights are up and lit.

"It's coming along nicely," Dostmann said, "and the support from the community has been great."

See also: Pair Works To Bring Holiday Lights Back To Greenwich Avenue

Dostmann and Bonomo praised the First Selectman's Office, as well as the parks and recreation and tree departments, for their "huge" support of the holiday lights project.

"I think we have to really thank the first selectman for his full support," Bonomo said, "along with the various departments in town who all came together in an effort to help expedite whatever had to be done to make it happen."

They also noted the support they received from local landlords, merchants, businesses and residents, which made the project a "real community effort," and without whom the project would not have been possible.

Dostmann and Bonomo agreed the nature of the project really reflects the spirit of the season, in that it involved people coming together for a communal cause, even in a year when many have been told to stay physically apart from each other.

"I think the response this year just shows the strength of the Greenwich community, both the businesses and the residents," Bonomo said, "and that everybody is excited to come together for the spirit of the season."