Crookston Mayor Dave Genereux, after listening to UMC Chancellor Chuck Casey and UMC Athletic Director Stephanie Helgeson announce Monday afternoon that the Golden Eagle men's hockey program was being discontinued immediately, said that Casey approached city officials with the news last week, and city officials since then have been gauging the impact of the news as construction nears on the new Crookston arena.
The fact that UMC has agreed to honor its five-year lease agreement at the new facility, which starts at $50,000 annually and then includes 3 percent increases in later years, is a big help and is appreciated, Genereux said. Beyond that, he said officials have met with Project Manager Ron Jasmer from Widseth Smith Nolting & Associates and determined that, other than "reducing the locker room footprint" because UMC will no longer need it, no major design changes are anticipated.
Genereux stressed that the Golden Eagle hockey team for years, in order to leave "prime" practice and game times for Pirate and youth hockey and figure skating programs, always practiced early in the morning, in the early afternoon or late at night. To illustrate that the loss of the Golden Eagles hockey team won't leave huge holes in the schedule at the new, three-sheet arena, Genereux said officials came up with a sample schedule from January 2010 that shows all three rinks getting heavy use, not during the school day, but from the time school dismisses until 10 p.m. The primary activity from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. during the school day is walking on the track around the perimeter of the three sheets.
"Nothing major really changes without them (the Golden Eagles) in the facility," he said. "We are still short, with two sheets, on ice time for Pirates, youth, Park and Rec skating and hockey activities."
More multi-use
Genereux acknowledged that, with continued declining enrollment in the school district, there's a chance that the third sheet of ice won't be needed all that often years down the road, if at all. Jasmer has indicated that the space housing the third sheet can be heated appropriately during the winter months and utilized in many multi-purpose ways. Genereux mentioned various sports and practices that could take place on artificial turf, such as baseball, softball, golf, soccer and tennis. And he mentioned basketball as another multi-use possibility.
The third sheet could be poured later in the season and melted earlier than the other two as well, Genereux said, and utilized for activities that don't fit in the current schedule, such as private skating lessons, broomball and curling.
With UMC still paying to lease the facility for five years, the mayor said there will remain a need to accommodate the university. Until UMC's vision of constructing a wellness center on campus is a reality, he said UMC will need space for various activities, and the new arena will be an ideal fit.
"Since the beginning, we have been looking for multi-purpose uses for the facility and that hasn't changed," Genereux said. "We don't want to see the Golden Eagles go, but we're trying to look at opportunities at this facility."
