by CONNIE TABBERT
Editor
FORESTERS FALLS — The next person who decides to try and break into the Foresters Falls outdoor rink building could be identified.
Recently, volunteers found the back door of the building damaged from someone trying to enter.
During this week’s Foresters Falls Athletic Association’s meeting, the possibilty of installing a trail camera to catch the person was briefly discussed.
“Fortunately we’ve had very little vandalism in the past,” said association president Dave Alexander.
However, two incidents recently have the association volunteers concerned it could get worse.
“Increased security will help us catch the person responsible,” he said.
It was a small crowd gathered around the table for the meeting, but that didn’t stop them from looking to the future for this outdoor rink.
Giving some history on the outdoor rink and association, Mr. Alexander said the association has been around for about 80 years while the rink has a much longer history.
There may not be many events held at the rink, but when there are, they are well attended, he added. There is skating from January to about mid-March, depending on how long the ice lasts, a winter carnival, Canada Day celebration, and baseball. This year, soccer was added, but the weekly event was in Beachburg. However, the association received the registration money for any child registered through Foresters Falls, he said.
These events help cover the costs of operating the rink, Mr. Alexander said.
Tallying last year’s expenses and revenue, treasurer Karen Black said just over $100 was realized. However, the bank account remains healthy because there has been a reserve built up over the years, which is needed.
Last year’s Canada Day event was hit financially due to the rain and there were some electrical problems that needed fixing, she added.
She added the monthly hydro expense is also high, considering the building doesn’t use much throughout the summer. However, it’s believed a pump that was replaced was the problem.
The Nevada ticket sales are down, she said. The tickets are sold at Annie’s Convenience Store in Foresters Falls.
The water at the rink and ball diamond must be tested monthly, Mr. Alexander said. This directive came from the provincial government a couple of years ago. He noted the ball diamond water must be tested a month prior to the ball field opening and a month after it closes. The township will cover the cost of shipping if the sample is at the office when its samples are picked up, Mr. Alexander said.
The cost is about $100 a month, he added.
He reminded everyone there is an AED at the rink, as well as the United Church. There is a list on the door of the rink as to who is trained to operate the AED and the key is at Annie’s store. Both were donated by the Heart and Stroke Foundation.
Looking at last winter, Mr. Alexander said it was extremely cold, so the rink wasn’t as busy as it could have been. However, there were a number of different age groups using the rink and the building, he added.
He did notice there are more younger children than the older children and teens.
Amy Waite, a mother of two, said there are many young children in Foresters Falls. She can think of 20 right away, and those are just the ones she knows about.
Mr. Alexander also noted the rink was rented eight times last year and there was also a donation of the rink for a prom committee fundraiser.
Looking at past events, he noted there were travel nights, sports nights, movie nights, girls night out, jam nights, and much more. These are all free to those attending, Mr. Alexander added.
There are also issues to be addressed at the ball field, including getting the water turned off, replacing burned out bulbs for the outdoor lights, weed control and possibly purchasing new equipment for next year.
Looking at the upcoming schedule, Mr. Alexander suggested several events that could be held, including youth cooking, art lessons, geocaching, boot camp for kids, sports and movie nights, and much more.
For the upcoming season, it was noted a new roll of plastic needs to be purchased that would go under the ice, which costs about $400, and the snowblower and pump needs to have maintenance done to get them ready for the winter months.
A workday needs to be set up, he said.
To begin flooding, Mr. Alexander said there has to be two weeks of minus degree temperatures and three nights in a row of -15.
The winter carnival is scheduled for Jan. 30, he added.
In reviewing new ideas, a playground for children aged 2 to 5 was discussed. Discussion centred around where to put it — near the one at the ball field, behind the library or at the rink. Mr. Alexander will discuss the ideas with the township building inspector to see what he thinks.
There also needs to be fundraising done to purchase the playground equipment and getting it installed, he said. It’s estimated the total cost to be around $10,000.
Mr. Alexander commented on how good the village looked during the World Kayak event due to the decorations put up by Harry Aswal and Tara Wallace.
“(Those decorations) really stepped up the look of our village during the competition, and most are still up,” Mr. Alexander said.
The idea of purchasing street decorations to brighten the village throughout the year was briefly discussed. Mr. Aswal said the store will donate the 25 cents commission from each Valley Vendor sold at the store towards new street decorations. As well, he handed over the money raised in the donation jar put out during the world kayak event.
If the idea of street decorations suits everyone, Mr. Alexander said a committee should be established with a chairperson. There would have to discussion on design and structure of the decorations, co-ordination of purchase and installation and where they would be stored during the off-season.
Mr. Alexander said the association also has the opportunity of participating in the Healthy Kid Community Challenge, an initiative of the Renfrew County District Health Unit. Informaiton provided by the county noted that an assessment needs survey needs to be completed, and that is scheduled to be done during the kick-off on Oct. 28. The location of the kick-off will be announced closer to the date, because the location will be determined by the number of people who plan on attending.
The association is also going to participate in Festival of Outdoor Rinks. It will take place in Renfrew County from Feb. 19 to 21, 2016. Once an outdoor rink has an event scheduled, it is to notify the organizing committee of the festival so it can be promoted with the other events. Some of the event ideas could be kids skate, parents and children skate, seniors skate, music skate, ice dance or a celebrity event, such as a hockey or ringette game with special people.
To end the meeting, Mr. Alexander said the rinks committee responsibilities include determining events and managing the rink, in terms of availability, maitnenance and volunteers.
Another meeting will be held later this fall to discuss the outdoor rink’s upcoming season.
