The Snoqualmie Valley Chamber of Commerce, with funding help from the City of Snoqualmie, had high hopes of bringing a Holiday Season Ice Rink to downtown Snoqualmie this year. Unfortunately, the lack of an adequate power supply at the rink site has put the plan ‘on ice.’
In May, the Snoqualmie City Council approved $150,000 to help bring the rink at the corner of Railroad Ave and King Street for the 2014 holiday season. It was estimated the rink could draw approximately 25,000 visitors to Snoqualmie.
In a released statement, Chamber CEO Nate Perea explained that over the course of the past few months it became clear that the costs to supply the abundance of electricity needed chill to the ice rink were just too much.
After doing research with the ice rink vendor and Puget Sound Energy, it was determined that bringing in sufficient power to the King Street lot would cost an estimated $50,000 for up-front engineering work. Other alternate options were explored, but were also not affordable.
According to a press release, the Snoqualmie Valley Chamber of Commerce stated, “In order to protect the tax-payer’s investment (funding from the City of Snoqualmie) and to protect the financial solvency of The Chamber of Commerce, our board voted unanimously, and with heavy hearts, to postpone the project.”
Although disappointed, Perea stated that he feels “confident that we made the most prudent financial decision for everyone involved, but it is still hard to accept.”
Perea stated he hopes their will be future conversations and the community will continue to come together to support the idea of the ice rink. He said, “The seed has been planted, now it just needs some creativity to help it grow.”
The Chamber does still plan to hold another Holiday-season event in historic Snoqualmie. Perea explained, “It won’t be the same size and scope as the ice rink, but we are working on a fun and very festive idea to bring the community together around the Holiday Season.”
