From The Daily Athenaeum
By Payton Mandell
The Mylan Park Foundation will begin construction on a new ice rink this fall, providing a new home for WVU Club Hockey and Morgantown ice recreation activities.
The new space will be the second ice rink in Morgantown and the newest addition to the foundation’s 14 indoor and outdoor sporting facilities in Monongalia County, according to its website.
Mylan Park Foundation President Ron Justice said he is excited about the opportunities the new arena will bring to the community.
“It will give us the ability to host travel-sport-type events when it comes to hockey, so there’s certainly going to be an economic impact from that aspect of it,” he said. “More on the local use, it will allow more time having two facilities for additional skating time, so that’s going to be a big benefit.”
The new rink will be open for public rental, according to Justice, who said exact hourly fees and public skate time slots will be announced at a later date.
Justice said priority users of the arena will be the WVU Club Hockey teams and the Morgantown Hockey Association.
WVU junior and Hockey Club President Owen Ambrozy said he anticipates that the new facility will be a key factor in the growth of the University’s hockey program, which currently consists of a D1, D2 and D3 men’s club team and a women’s club team.
Ambrozy said he hopes the rink will improve WVU Hockey’s status, allowing teams to compete at the NCAA level. Currently, the teams compete in the American Collegiate Hockey Association, according to the WVU Hockey website.
“It’s a big program, and I think that every program at our level aspires to get to the next level, which is NCAA,” Ambrozy said. “I think that by building a rink, this is the next step to the future.”
While Ambrozy said he appreciates the proximity of the Morgantown Ice Arena to the University’s campus, he believes a new rink is long overdue.
“It gets the job done, it’s not the best rink in the world, but we’re all just grateful to have a rink near campus that allows us to play,” Ambrozy said. “Our rink is very old. WVU’s been playing there for at least 40 years.”
WVU Hockey currently divides time at the Morgantown Ice Arena between its three men’s club teams and women’s club team, in addition to sharing it with the public. Ambrozy said he is most looking forward to the new rink’s updated locker rooms.
“D1 has a locker room with a bathroom, but D2 only has a locker room, we don’t have any showers or bathrooms,” Ambrozy said. “D3 doesn’t have any locker room space.”
Justice said the new facility will be an estimated 40,000 square-feet and feature six locker rooms, a check-in counter, skate rental, offices and concessions. The seating capacity is between 600-800 fans, but the exact number is unknown, Justice said.
March-Westin is leading the construction of the facility with an estimated budget of $16 million. The project’s funding was granted by the Hazel Ruby McQuain Charitable Trust, but the Foundation is currently seeking additional local sponsors, according to Justice.
“We’re very happy with the progress, and we’re very appreciative of the support from the Hazel Ruby McQuain Charitable Trust,” Justice said. “We’re looking forward to working with all the partner groups as we bring this to fruition.”
The Foundation will release the conceptual design of the facility and updated construction details within the next month, according to Justice.
Ambrozy said he is anxiously awaiting to see what the new facility will look like.
“I haven’t thought too much about what the rink is actually going to consist of or what features it will have, so I’m kind of excited to see, when the plans come out, how it’s gonna be and how much of an upgrade we’re gonna get,” Ambrozy said. “I think that fall of 2025 is very optimistic, and I really hope we can get it finished and started by then.”
WVU’s hockey season begins Sept. 15 against the University of Pittsburgh at Wesbanco Arena located in Wheeling, West Virginia. The first home game is Oct. 12 at the Morgantown Ice Arena, located at 1001 Mississippi St. Admission is free for students.
(Originally published at https://www.thedaonline.com/news/morgantown/new-mylan-park-ice-rink-to-home-wvu-club-hockey/article_a1250d1e-63f0-11ef-a967-c73f776e9f57.html)
