Council to tackle Pasadena ice rink proposal on Monday

Looks like the Pasadena City Council is finally going to vote on building a full-size ice rink in the city at the Pasadena Convention Center. Here's the item on the agenda for Monday, Sept. 27: 

It is recommended that the City Council:

(1) Authorize the City Manager to issue a 10 year 2.5% annual interest bearing loan, not to exceed $1.5 million from City funds to the Pasadena Center Operating Company (PCOC), to be used for the ice rink relocation to the pavilion if the conditional use permit is granted; and

(2) Recognize and appropriate the expenditure of $1.5 million in PCOC Reserves for the ice rink relocation to the pavilion if the conditional use permit is granted. 

The staff report has some interesting tidbits. For one, it suggests the new rink will be there for 10 years and that the city will recover the full cost of the new rink. That's good because it has been proposed as a temporary structure until a permanent site for a rink could be found -- something that, quite frankly, looks hopeless. 

The report also suggests that regular users of the rink could get a $36 per month parking pass for the garage under the rink. That's not a bad deal for frequent skaters given that street parking in the area around the convention center can be scarce. 

We'll see how it goes Monday. After years of talking about a new rink, nothing is a sure thing when it comes to our friends on the City Council who wouldn't know a puck if it bonked them in the noggin.

--S.H.