Progress of Mishawaka's Ironworks ice skating rink on track
MISHAWAKA, Ind. --- Wednesday’s frigid temperatures had some people wanting to stay inside and hide under the covers, but for others, it was the perfect day for something like ice skating! For Mishawaka residents, the wait is almost over for the grand opening of the brand-new Ironworks ice skating rink.
“We’re working around the clock and making sure everything’s good to go,” says Mishawaka’s Mayor Dave Wood.
A final layer of ice marks one of the finishing touches to downtown Mishawaka’s newest winter attraction.
“The ice is on, and we have good temperature now to keep the ice,” Mayor Wood says.
Replacing the old and barely functional Merrifield Ice Rink, Mayor Wood says the Ironworks ice skating rink will be an attraction for locals and visitors looking to skate.
“It couldn’t have been more timely that we open this now, we never missed a season,” says Mayor Wood. “Although last year, just to get it to work we had to put a lot of resources into it, but that facility is done, and we’ve moved onto a great space here downtown.”
Despite some ’60 degree’ setbacks in the past week, the rink is still on track to welcome skaters for the first time on December 3rd. In fact, Mayor Wood expects Saturday’s temperatures of 45 degrees to be perfect ice-skating weather for its grand opening.
“We lost a couple of layers, but today we were able to get them right back down,” Mayor Wood says. “We can hold ice into the low 50s without a problem, so we don’t anticipate any issues getting people onto their ice skates.”
Beyond its grand opening, be ready to book your skating plans in advance!
“We are doing reservation only because it’s been in such high demand,” says Mayor Wood.
The demand and anticipation are well-deserved; Mayor Wood says the rink will boost the downtown area as a whole and give residents a new place to make the most out of the winter months.
“We are going to either complain about it or embrace it, and we’re going to embrace it!” Mayor Wood says. “And this is a great way to come celebrate life in Mishawaka downtown.”
The grand opening of the Ironworks ice skating rink will be at Winterfest on Saturday, December 3rd. More details about Winterfest can be found here.