School Hopes for Rink, Theater Funds

Millikan Middle School hopes to receive city grant money to fund construction of a roller hockey rink and several outdoor theaters on campus, school administrators said.

Mayor Richard Riordan’s Commission on Children, Youth and Family has recommended to the City Council that Millikan, among others, be considered for a grant. The council has the final say.

If successful, the project would receive Proposition K funds, which voters approved for the improvement of park and recreation facilities.

Commission officials expect the final decision to be made in three to four weeks, according to a spokeswoman.

Millikan applied for the grant in November in hopes of having it subsidize a major recreation program at the school.

School officials said the plan includes construction of the hockey rink, other sport courts, outdoor theaters and dance areas on land now occupied by unused school parking lots.

“We have the room for it and the desire for it,” Millikan Principal Norman Isaacs said.

Isaacs said he envisions an after-school and weekend recreation program at the school, to be used by children throughout Sherman Oaks.

Several teachers have already volunteered to help by coaching teams and teaching subjects such as modern dance and theater, he said.

“So many people have responded to this. It’s such a great idea,” Isaacs said.

“There really is a need for something like this in the Valley. Instead of having these kids roam around with nothing to do, we could have them learning and participating in enriching programs. Everyone benefits.”

Since September when Councilman Mike Feuer killed a plan that would have funded construction of a rink at the Studio City Recreation Center, city officials have been searching for a suitable location to build a rink.

Although school officials are excited about the possibility of getting the special funds, commission officials stressed there are no guarantees.

“The council will look at a lot of different requests, most of which they won’t be able to grant,” said Elisa Glickman, a commission spokeswoman.