Ice rink division

In an effort to avoid giving back grant money and writing off time and money and in-kind services already invested, the Mammoth Lakes Town Council allocated $25,000 from its discretionary fund on Wednesday night to allow staff to prepare a construction bid package in the next month for the ice rink facility, as well as amend the design contract with Triad to complete structural calculations and details for the rink’s future roof foundation.

The Town of Mammoth Lakes was recently awarded the Roberti-Z’berg-Harris grant in the amount of $500,000. This grant money expires in March 2012, which means that unless the Town uses the funds this summer, it will lose them. According to the staff report, the current estimate for construction of the ice rink’s slab and foundation with refrigerator tubing is $922,000, which means another $422,000 will need to be found in addition to the grant.

Council member Matthew Lehman was against moving forward with the ice rink until Council took a moment to step back and reassess what it was doing with the project, but he was outvoted 4-1. Council member Rick Wood claimed Council didn’t have a choice but to move forward since the Town has already invested more than $2 million in the project.

The Sheet has been running a survey here at www.thesheetnews.com, for the past week asking readers what they thought the Town should do about the ice rink. Check it out and cast your vote.