Skaters ask council to help save Ice Chalet

Jennifer Kho

COSTA MESA -- Dozens of Ice Chalet skaters and parents -- many wearing

ice skating costumes and skates with covered blades -- tried to convince

the City Council on Monday night to help them save the skating rink,

which is scheduled to close this month.

“We’re here in support of a rundown . . . building that means a lot to

us,” said Jan Kowski, a Fountain Valley resident who brought a stack of

books that mention Ice Chalet, its coaches or skaters.

“The value of the ice rink obviously has personal appeal to everyone

who participates. But Costa Mesa is on the map because of the Ice Chalet

ice rink.

“. . . We are not talking about just a personal kids’ activity. We’re

talking about the impression we make on the world. If we lose the rink,

the whole community will suffer.”

Ice Chalet, which for more than 27 years has been a community resource

and training ground for several Olympic skaters, announced last week that

it will close Jan. 28.

Young skaters and their parents are fighting to keep Ice Chalet open

or to start another skating rink in its place.

Some have signed a petition urging the city and the property owner,

C.J. Segerstrom and Sons, to help keep the rink open.

“The coaches are truly committed and I am committed,” said Alyse

Pesqueira, 13, of Fountain Valley.

The teenager said she has been going to Ice Chalet for six years,

skating three and sometime four days a week.

“I landed my very first axel at Costa Mesa Ice Chalet,” she said. “I

just have a lot of memories about that rink. I have dropped all the other

sports I used to do. I love skating.”

Christine Lesch, 15, of Santa Ana said ice skating keeps her out of

trouble.

“Ice skating helps keep kids off the streets and off drugs. I saw it

happen to me,” she said.

“I used to get in trouble and I pretty much stopped after I began

skating. Keeping the rink can help the community become a better place as

a whole because if kids are kept off the streets, there can be no

problems after school.”

A number of students said they use the rink as part of their physical

education classes and will have to travel much farther if the rink

closes.

Debbie Sims of Westminster said she could walk to the local rink but

chooses to drive her 3-year-old daughter, Ashley Payne, to Ice Chalet

instead.

“The Westminster rink is nice and clean, has a food bar and is

well-kept up, but we drive to get to this rink -- with rodents, falling

ceiling tiles and a parking lot you have to wade through when it rains --

because of the coaches,” she said.

“To split them up would be terrible. . . . The skaters who are there

now want to go on and have the drive to compete. Most skaters take

lessons from a team of coaches, not one coach.”

Mayor Libby Cowan said the issue might not be in the council’s

jurisdiction.

She asked the parents to meet with representatives of Ice Chalet and

C.J. Segerstrom and Sons and to update the council on the discussions at

its Feb. 20 meeting.

In other action, the council discussed the possibility of individually

handpicking city commissioners but voted 3 to 2 against the process.

Cowan and Councilwoman Linda Dixon -- both previous supporters of the

new process -- said they were persuaded by residents speaking against the

new process to vote to continue the current method of voting as a whole

to appoint commissioners. Councilman Chris Steel, who previously opposed

the proposed new process, voted with the majority.

The only difference is the new commissioners -- scheduled to be

appointed in February -- will be appointed to two-year terms instead of

the four-year terms of previous commissioners.

Councilman Gary Monahan, who strongly opposed the new process, and

Councilwoman Karen Robinson voted against keeping the same appointment

process except for changing the length of the terms.

Robinson spoke in favor of individual appointments of commissioners

with ratification by the entire council and Monahan supported retaining

the appointment process, including the four-year terms.

FYI

o7 NEXT MEETINGf7

* What: Costa Mesa City Council meeting

* When: 6:30 p.m. Feb. 5

* Where: City Hall, 77 Fair Drive, Costa Mesa

* Information: (714) 754-5223