Downtown Silver Spring could get an ice rink and artificial turf at Veterans Plaza.
It is feasible to have a seasonal ice rink in front of the planned civic center, and then to replace the rink with artificial turf during warmer months, said Gary Stith, director of Silver Spring’s regional center.
The option was suggested after Monday night’s meeting of the pedestrian safety committee in downtown Silver Spring. Four of ten attendees said they agreed with the suggestion.
Stith told The Penguin he would present the option to MoCo exec Ike Leggett (D) this afternoon when they meet to discuss the project’s status. He also said that the option hadn’t been considered because no one had suggested it before.
“We don’t really have a good gauge” for measuring public sentiment on the matter, Darian Unger, committee chairman, admitted.
According to Unger and Stith, the ice rink had been removed from Veterans Plaza plans more than a year ago because of budget constraints. It was reinserted at the request of some area residents, and with the infusion of $5 million.
Stith did not say how much money would be needed to fund a seasonal artificial-turf surface.
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I think that is the best solution – ice during winter and fake green turf during the other nine months.
Gee, I proposed that in a Penguin “Holler back” on March 19th:
“Why can’t we have it both ways? Use the space for an ice rink in the winter and cover the surface with “the turf” the rest of the year.
Mar 19, 2007 | 4:36 pm”
Gary Stith is quoted as saying “the option hadn’t been considered because no one had suggested it before.” Was my comment the source of the idea? It seems hard to believe that nobody thought of it before that. It seems so obvious.
It was a good “Holler Back” comment, Bob.
A couple of people brought it up at Monday night’s meeting. (It wasn’t me. I was too busy lifting my lower jaw from the floor when Gary Stith volunteered to share the suggestion with Ike Leggett.)
The problem doesn’t seem to be a lack of ideas, but more like a lack of communication between residents and the powers that be. As advisory board member Damian Unger said: “We don’t really have a good gauge” for the prevailing public sentiment.
Editor’s note: I’ve edited my own comment. How do you like that shit? (Mar 27, 2007)
I’ve brought the idea up on numerous website for the last couple of months. It seems like an obvious compromise since neither an ice rink nor “turf” (why not real grass?) are used year-round.
Some employees of the regional center (eg, Gary Stith, marketing director Susan Hoffmann) believe real grass would not hold up to the area’s foot traffic. Both have said on different occassions that periodic treatment (with either seeds or sod) would close the lawn to public access. Real grass also would turn into mud in the rain, which could make for a messy jazz festival.
Their words, not mine.
(That’s why I didn’t think a grassy park would work very well there in the first place.) Turf is so tacky!!! In 5 years we’ll probably regret putting it down.