Ice Machine Delivered to New Skating Rink

Valley skaters take note: The ice machine has cometh.

Constructions crews used cranes to lower into place an enormous “ice plant” that will keep the surface of the Valley’s newest rink cool and smooth even as temperatures outside reach into triple digits.

The rink is part of a $2.5-million, 50,000 square-foot roller- and ice-skating center under construction on the Van Nuys Boulevard site of the former Panorama Bowl. Originally slated to open in May, the center is now expected to be finished in July, Recreation World officials said.

“This is pretty much the state of the art in ice-making machinery. The basic technology is the same as it was 100 years ago, except now the process is controlled by computer and can be operated even from off-site,” said Alan Deglin, director of construction for Ice Chalet, a Recreation World company.

Weighing 35 tons and costing about $350,000, the ice plant “looks like something that came from the engine room of the Titanic,” Deglin said. It was delivered last week from Canada.

When the plant is operating, two motors will power two large compressors that will cool and distribute glycol, a form of antifreeze, through tubing running underneath the rink, freezing the water above.

A layer of sand, which helps to ensure a smooth ice surface, and a heating grid will be installed under the ice, Deglin said. Without the heating grid, the coolant could seep down and freeze the ground beneath the building.

“Once that starts, it’s impossible to stop. It’s like an iceberg,” Deglin said. “I heard of one rink that had ice 50 feet underground.”

Recreation World, which also owns Corbin Bowl in Reseda and 12 other skating facilities nationwide, received a $350,000 Community Redevelopment Agency earthquake-recovery loan to help with the project.

The center will have two large rinks, one for roller- and in-line skating and the other for ice skating, as well as a snack bar, a lounge, a retail store and locker facilities for hockey players.