SIMI VALLEY : Council OKs Plan for Skating Complex

Pleased at the prospect of providing wholesome entertainment for children, the Simi Valley City Council approved a plan to build a skating complex in an area zoned for industrial use.

The plan approved Monday calls for the construction of two ice skating rinks and a roller skating rink in a commercial building at the northeast corner of Old Los Angeles Avenue and Easy Street.

“Almost weekly we hear from parents who say there’s just nothing for our kids to do,” Councilman Bill Davis said. “Here’s the ability to turn empty buildings into something positive for the children.”

Developer Sean McGillivray, who owns the Conejo Valley Ice Skating Center in Newbury Park, said the rinks would “be great for Simi Valley.”

McGillivray said he hopes to open the complex by late spring.

Thousand Oaks resident Leslie Milne opposed the project, saying she feared children would be unsafe in an industrial area where trucks and large equipment are operated.

But Mayor Greg Stratton pointed out that during peak skating hours, most businesses in the area would be closed. “The kids will be coming in at night and on the weekends,” he said. “It will be an advantage to the businesses to have people in the area at night.”

Councilwoman Sandi Webb, who canvassed on skates during her campaign for the council, said: “I’m ready to go roller skating.”