BARRY’S BAY – The boards are rotting, the walls are shifting and there is severe damage to many parts of the structure.
Essentially, Barry’s Bay’s outdoor rink has become a liability to the township.
That was the consensus at the May 7 recreation, heritage and community economic development committee.
Paul Nopper is the recreation and community development coordinator for Madawaska Valley Township. He explained that on April 27, staff conducted an inspection of the outdoor rink and concluded that the facility is unfit and unsafe for current use by the public.
There are large rips in the metal fence, fencing posts have pulled away from the boards, the fence frame is broken and wood is rotting, and most of the large sideboards are damaged along the bottom.
Outer posts holding the rink walls up are rotten and bending, causing the walls to shift and there are large holes in the rink shack building.
Nopper estimates the cost of constructing a new rink, which sits outside the Paul J. Yakabuski Community Centre would cost upwards of $30,000.
Get your May 13, 2015 edition of The Valley Gazette to read the full story.