San Fernando : Roller-Hockey Rink Opens in Pioneer Park

On an asphalt parking lot in under-used Pioneer Park, future Olympians may compete in a new roller-hockey rink built entirely with volunteer labor and donated materials. Although it requires a few finishing touches, the rink opened last week with a party sponsored by city officials. About 100 in-line skaters, mostly kids, came to check it out, City Administrator Mary Strenn said.

The brainchild of City Councilman Ray Ojeda, the rink is the only one of its kind in San Fernando, and one of few in the northeast Valley, city recreation officials said.

Ojeda got the idea to build a rink after chatting with in-line skaters playing hockey in city streets. “It worried me that someone would get hurt in the street,” he said. “But they told me they had nowhere else to play.”

Ojeda talked to the San Fernando Police Assn., Kiwanis Club and Los Angeles Police Department youth group organizers. Each decided to donate funds or labor.

A construction company offered to provide free materials, and within a month, the frame of the rink, about 150 by 80 feet, was in place.

This week, the wood frame will be painted, and chain link fencing will be erected around the rink, Ojeda said. In addition, penalty boxes and a scorekeeper platform are being finished.

In the meantime, the rink is open for pick-up games in a sport that has become extremely popular among elementary and high school students.

An international professional league formed in 1992, the same year roller-hockey was added as a demonstration sport at the Summer Olympic Games in Barcelona.

The city is seeking coaches, referees and players to start a youth roller-hockey league at the park.

For more information, call (818) 898-1290. Pioneer Park is situated at 828 N. Harding St., east of Glenoaks Boulevard.