The extra ice pad in Walkerton is getting some help from Brockton Council.
At Monday night's meeting, council agreed to support a motion to loan the Walkerton Ice Pad Fundraising Committee some money to help pay for renovations to the Horse Palace rink, which is used as spare ice for the local minor hockey program.
Chairman of Twice the Ice Nigel Hope says they're just short of their fundraising goal without even canvassing local businesses for funds yet.
"It's very well known in the community that the Horse Palace is a great source of ice time for the whole community. We don't foresee a real challenge toward the fundraising, we just have to hit the pavement and see how we do. Everyone usually greets us with a smile," he says.
The total cost of renovations is just shy of $172,000, and the fundraising is roughly $49,000 shy of their goal. Council will loan the committee whatever they aren't able to raise.
Greg Bester, chairman of the Fundraising Committee, says the upgrades are needed to extend the life of the Horse Palace.
"Our project is to replace our chiller and refrigeration lines that run beneath the ice," says Bester. "Our current equipment is well beyond their expiration dates, so we're securing this now so we can have another 15 years of ice time at the Horse Palace for Walkerton Minor Hockey."
