The McIrvine outdoor ice rink will be covered with a roof later this year at a cost of $994,000 that will help reduce snow removal costs and increase its availability to skaters and other users.
However, the rink in the east end of town won’t be receiving the same treatment – at least for now.
According to Travis Rob, operations and facilities manager for the town of fort Frances, putting a roof over the McIrvine rink alone is preferable because $700,000 is already earmarked for the project, while the east-end rink has yet to get full funding.
“At this time, the town has firm pricing on the steel roof structure, structural and electrical design and dasher board systems,” according to a report from Rob submitted to Monday’s council meeting. “Council needs to award the Request for Proposals for the supply and installation of a roof structure at McIrvine Rink and decide on including [the] East End rink as well.”
Initial estimates to complete work on roofs for both rinks were pegged at around $1.06 million, if funding and grants were secured to build both in a package deal. It has not yet received any outside funding for the East End Rink.
Councillor Wendy Brunetta said the town might lose out on a savings of about $50,000 if it was to approve a roof for the east-end rink as well. However, Councillor Mike Behan noted that if the town is approved for funding for the East End rink, the savings associated with the receipt of a grant to pay for part of the East End rink’s upgrades would dwarf any savings available at the present moment.
Late last year, the town received $500,000 in Northern Ontario Heritage Fund funding for the rehabilitation of McIrvine Rink. In December 2025, a phase one application was made to Northern Ontario Heritage Fund for another $500,000 in funding to complete the same rehabilitation of the East End Rink.
Then, early this year, the town submitted a phase 2 application for consideration for this project, which would entail demolishing and removing existing rink structures, building concrete slabs, erecting steel roof structures over the slabs complete with lighting and new dasher boards. The town noted that similar installations have been completed in Alberton and Chapple Townships in recent years.
