Ribbon Cutting Ceremony Held at Renovated Memorial Ice Rink

WHEELING -- Work on the recently renovated J. B. Chambers Memorial Ice Rink at Wheeling Park was unveiled Wednesday evening during a formal ribbon cutting ceremony.

In March 2020, the Wheeling Park Commission broke ground on a $1.35 million renovation to transform the community ice rink into a new, state-of-the-art ice complex and multipurpose community facility.

Eriks Janelsins, president and CEO of Oglebay Foundation, made opening comments to dozens of local city, county and park officials who were on hand for the dedication event. He said there were too many individuals and organizations to thank them all.

"Thank you all for your support of youth recreation in our community. The partnerships between the city, the county commission all made this possible today," Janelsins said. "We started with new chillers five years ago, and then last March we totally renovated this space with new concrete, new dasher boards, new interior spaces. ... Gifts of $1.35 million dollars were raised to do this project," he added.

Janelsins said the J. B. Chambers Foundation was an "incredible partner" from the start.

"They kind of danced with us along as we envisioned this project. We thank them for their support. WAHA (Wheeling Amateur Hockey Association) has been a champion of this space for so many years," he added.

David Lindelow, Wheeling Park Commission President/CEO, Brann Altmeyer, J. B. Chambers Memorial Foundation Board President, local resident Dick Riley, and Josh Jefferson, Regional Economic Development Partnership (RED) all participated in the official ribbon cutting, as Riley cut the ribbon.

Riley, who has been involved with WAHA for 50 years, explained to the crowd that he remembers when the rink was just a slab of concrete, with no roof or dasher boards.

"We skated in the snow and in the rain. ... and we had great times throughout the life-span of the rink. But this is the best improvement we've had in years and it's going to be great for the children of Wheeling and the surrounding area," Riley explained.

Lindelow thanked everyone in attendance and said it was hard to believe that it was 61 years since the inaugural dedication of the rink.

"From what I've heard from everybody, it just shows how important this ice rink has been for the people of Wheeling for several generations," Lindelow explained. "I'm so proud to be part of this. I'm so proud to continue the tradition and to continue the legacy of Wheeling Park," he added.

Representing the J.B. Chambers Memorial Foundation, Altmeyer said they join everybody in celebrating the newly renovated rink.

"We are honored to be a part of the process," Altmeyer commented.

While contractor Minnesota Ice installed the actual plumbing beneath the rink surface, crews with Rink Systems Inc., of Albert Lea, Minnesota, precast all the anchors in the rink before a third company poured the actual concrete. The ice rink refrigeration system includes approximately seven miles of piping beneath the concrete floor.

Wheeling Park’s ice rink is the only public ice facility in the Upper Ohio Valley, serving children and adults from the northern panhandle of West Virginia, eastern Ohio, and western Pennsylvania regions. The rink is used by 600 Wheeling Amateur Hockey players, 125 Wheeling Figure Skating Club members, six hockey teams from five area schools, and the 20,000-plus general skating admissions each year.

The rink officially opens to the public this Friday evening.