Red Arrow Park Roller Rink Opens

Red Arrow Park. Photo by Jeramey Jannene.

The ice-skating rink in Red Arrow Park is officially open to the public for roller skating.

It was announced earlier this month that Roll Train MKE and Milwaukee Downtown BID #21 would be programming a series of skating events in the park this summer, called Summer Spinz. Milwaukee County Parks has been planning to open the rink for public access, but was waiting for the weather to improve.

The park’s 9,000 square-foot rink was built in 1999 for ice skating and Parks uses it for its annual “Slice of Ice” program. Parks was initially resistant to roller skating on the ice rink. The refrigeration coils reportedly lay just below the surface of the concrete, and staff had concerns about what roller skating wheels might do to the surface of the concrete pad, potentially affecting the ability to create a sheet of ice in the winter. Tarantino told Urban Milwaukee those concerns remain, but the department is letting skating move forward.

“I am immensely proud of Roll Train’s accomplishments and the collaborative efforts made by the Milwaukee County Parks Department,” Milwaukee County Board Chairwoman Marcelia Nicholson said in a statement Friday. “Roller skating provides a wonderful recreational opportunity for our community, promoting physical activity, positive engagement, and togetherness. This achievement would not have been possible without the dedication and support of all those involved.”

The chairwoman noted that many in the skating community have been “eagerly awaiting this opportunity” and encouraged residents to “take advantage of this exciting addition to Red Arrow Park.”

Terrance Clarke and Ellen Fine of Roll Train MKE have been advocating for skating in Red Arrow Park for years. There are no other roller skating areas in downtown Milwaukee. Roller skating in the park enjoyed strong support from the local roller skating community, which was shown several times at public meetings.

During summer 2022, Nicholson authored a resolution setting aside funding for a roller skating program in the parks. County Executive David Crowley ultimately vetoed it, citing the source of the funding, which was the county’s rainy day fund, and noted that it was not feasible to launch before the end of the summer season. Crowley instead urged supervisors to pursue something similar in the 2023 budget.

Parks plans to initially have the rink open to the public from noon to 5 p.m. on weekdays and from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. on weekends, according to a recent report from the department. Attendance will be tracked by parks employees, and after memorial day weekend, “Parks will adjust scheduling to be open during periods of higher use and seasonal staffing levels,” the report states.

Before opening the rink to the public, Parks conducted a “benchmark assessment” of the rink’s condition, and will continue inspections every two weeks throughout the summer. “The full extent of the impact of roller skating on the rink will likely not be known until the rink is prepared for winter operations in early November 2023,” the department reported.