Greenwich RTM Halts Latest Ice Rink Replacement Proposal

GREENWICH, CT — The current proposal for a new skating rink in Greenwich has been put on ice.

On Tuesday night, 136 members of the Representative Town Meeting voted against Municipal Improvement (MI) status for a new Dorothy Hamill Rink in Byram, while 52 members voted for it and six abstained.

As the town's legislative body voted, "Ice Ice Baby" by Vanilla Ice was appropriately played.

The vote effectively halted the project from moving forward in its current form, sending town officials back to the drawing board.

The project received MI status from the town's Planning & Zoning Commission last month. The Town Clerk's office then received a letter from Byram residents Liz Eckert, Joseph Kantorski, Al Shehadi and Lucy von Brachel on Dec. 23 asking for the MI status to be referred to the RTM for a vote.

MI status is required for all projects on town property and allows projects to pursue funding from the town's Board of Estimate and Taxation, but under the town charter, property owners can refer MI status to the RTM.

The current Dorothy Hamill Rink was built in 1972 essentially as a slab of ice. It was then built up in a piecemeal fashion, leading to disrepair over the years to the point that it needs to be replaced.

While RTM members said a new rink is needed, they objected to the most recent proposal, commonly referred to as "the flip" option, which would have built a new 40,671-square-foot ice rink at the location of the current baseball field within Eugene Morlot Memorial Park.

Once the new rink was operational, the existing facility would have been demolished and a new baseball diamond would've been constructed in its place.

Those in favor of removing MI status from the project argued the current rink proposal was at odds with the town's Plan of Conservation and Development, a document that serves as a guiding light in land use decisions.

Other RTM members said they felt the planning process for the rink project, spearheaded by the Rink User Committee for Design & Planning, a group put together by Camillo several years ago, was flawed, and a more "transparent and inclusive process" was needed, along a further exploration of possible permanent/temporary rink locations.

Those in favor of the flip proposal said it was the best option and it addressed concerns from various stakeholders, and would also help keep town hockey and skating programs alive. Residents cautioned against delay for a new rink, citing the current aging facility.

First Selectman Fred Camillo said Tuesday night that the flip option would be less expensive than building on the current footprint, and he said it would enhance the park area with a correctly oriented baseball field, a walking path for passive recreation throughout the park, more green space and proper signage for a grove of memorial trees dedicated to Byram veterans.

Camillo also said the flip would allow for the installation of solar panels on the new building.

The town has explored locations for a temporary rink to use during construction, but none have been deemed viable. The flip, according to officials, would provide ice time at the current rink during the construction of the new facility and continuity for town programs.

Jack Duffy, head coach of Greenwich High School boys hockey and a member of the Rink User Committee, said finding ice time elsewhere in town or neighboring municipalities would be difficult.

"We cannot run our programs with a piecemeal approach to ice time. It takes ice contracts that are well-planned and robust. This kind of ice is simply not available in our area," he said. "If this rink is taken offline, our programs will not be set back for two to three years, they will be at risk for their survival."

Lucy von Brachel, an RTM member and one of the four Byram residents who asked to refer the MI status to the RTM, said she objected to the flip and "the rink user committee's unwillingness to respond to consistent feedback from a number of stakeholders, not just the residents of Byram."

She said she stopped going to Rink User Committee meetings because she felt they were "unproductive."

"Again and again, we've been told that all other options have been explored, the siting decision has been made," she said. "Again and again, we've asked why other options have been swept aside and get answers akin to, 'Because I said so,' but in the form of an FAQ."

Von Brachel said she prefers building a rink on the current location "if possible" and putting up a temporary rink during construction.

"The scale of this project is huge and completely changes this park. When you drive into the park today, you see a green field, stately trees and the historic Byram School building," von Brachel said. "With the flip, the rink becomes the focal point, and it is out of scale, dwarfing everything around it. Just as you would, if this were proposed in your neighborhood, we believe that Byram deserves a voice and a more transparent review of the options."

Another RTM member, James Waters, who chairs the RTM Budget Overview Committee and Old Greenwich School Building Committee, said approving the MI status for the project would send the town down the wrong path with "many potentially unresolvable questions."

We have a bad plan, with bad numbers, from a bad process that would set a terrible precedent," Waters said. "Sometimes small setbacks can help fast-track something. We improve our chances with a better plan and better oversight. It's time for the town to get serious."

RTM members also said they wanted "a more defined cost analysis" for the project before moving forward.

The most recent Rink User Committee newsletter, which was released on Jan. 2, noted Camillo included $1.2 million for design and planning work in his proposed 2025-2026 budget, up from $980,000 outlined in the current spending plan.

Private money from foundations and other individuals would help bring costs down for the rink and baseball field, according to Camillo, who told Patch Wednesday he's committed to seeing the rink project through to the end.

"While the disappointing vote of the RTM will no doubt push this project back another couple years and substantially increase the cost, which was the exact argument of some of the people against the flip, I am meeting with staff and stakeholders now to put in place a plan to request money from the BET to have an independent cost analysis is done between the flip and rebuilding in place," Camillo said, saying he's "more than confident" the analysis will support the flip.

Camillo noted that "every worthwhile project" Greenwich has pursued has had opposition.

"Even Cos Cob Park had opposition, the about-to-be newly opened Cohen Eastern Greenwich Civic Center had opposition right up until the time it was passed, and Tod’s Point, the crown jewel of our Parks and Recreation system had so much opposition that even some on the BET at the time in the mid-40s, thought it was too expensive and a waste of our taxpayer dollars," Camillo said.

"How do those decisions and positions look today? I know it’s very frustrating for our rink users and residents to have to wait even longer now and have to see even more tax dollars expended, but we will get it done."