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Recreation Commission Meeting April 5, 2004 plastic piping for the ice surface, which is not secured to the bottom; it just lies there. There is periodic shifting. The crew has a problem painting because ten degrees can't be run. The paint company recommends ten degree ice when you're spraying it. There are massive cracks running down the middle because of sand base. When there's cracks, water tends to seep in the next time there's water put on them, and it must soften the bottom, and that's when sand is seen like is being seen now (through some cracking). The spot where the Hockey Club had to move the face-off shows some sand, and you can see some pipes. The paint has disappeared, and that's not because of the water; there's a big crack there. It's probably a half inch below the surface, which is fine. The ice normally runs three quarter inch, half inch above the paint and the lines. When the ice is made, it can't be made flat. It has drains underneath it. It can't be flooded like an ice cube tray to become flat, it comes in layers, and runs off the drains. It's a phenomenon that happens in a sand rink. It does not happen in a cement rink. The header pipes are steel, and the U bends on the ends are steel and are very rusty. There has been talk for several years about replacing those. The answer is, "Well, we don't have the money to do the whole rink. Let's just wait until one goes and we'll do one at a time." That's costly, too. You don't know when they are going to go. The rink is 30 years old. Elyria has put in two rinks in ten years. When they go, they just replace them. The North Olmsted rink is probably the only sand-based rink in this end of the country. The crew is just trying to keep it together and run it the best we can. Mr. Kelley asked the longevity of an ice rink. Mr. Stein replied it could probably be forever if it was repaired. It depends upon the materials. If you put steel pipes in a concrete base, the concrete would work on the steel pipes and eventually they would be replaced. Mr. Stein continued by saying that the dehumidification unit is actually sucking the moisture out of the wood, and the wood is popping under the paint. Sherwin Williams has a paint that will dry in about two hours. The best thing that we can do is put a plastic top on it. To finish the whole rink with the plastic top will cost about $13,000. That would be with retrofitting, because the boards are wood underneath it. The crew needs to put a steel frame under it. Several years ago Mr. Stein built some steel frames. For a twenty foot section of wall, the cost from a company would be about $15,000 to $20,000. After getting the specs from the company, the crew went to a steel company, bought what was necessary and welded it and repaired it themselves. It's being pieced together; it can't be done in one year. Eventually, the whole rink will be done. NOHC stated that their job is to do what they can do on its end to make it better, with the help of the Recreation Department. They want to stay in North Olmsted. Mr. Jesse said that there are many different groups with many different needs from the recreation department: summer sports, winter sports and in-between. Currently, the budget of the Recreation Department is set up so that half of it comes from the Recreation Levy in taxes and half of it comes from user fees such as hockey club fees. A large percentage of users are non- residents. Mr. Jesse is not comfortable with the fact that the recreational offerings presently are what people really want or need. One of the first things is to come up with an effective survey, asking if people are willing to pay for an expanded hockey club or fitness center, and so forth. Page 3