CHICO — Coming off of its third year, the City Plaza ice rink has once again drawn large crowds to its various events throughout the winter months.
Previously run by the Downtown Chico Business Association on behalf of the city of Chico, this is the first year the rink has been overseen by the Chico Area Recreation and Park District, commonly referred to as CARD. District General Manager Annabel Grimm said ticket sales were generally above last year.
“This year, as of about Wednesday evening, we’ve sold a little over 14,000 tickets,” Grimm said. “We’re on pace. We measured it a couple of times during the season and found we were outpacing the daily average of the prior year.”
The rink came to life in 2021 after the Chico City Council approved its creation with support from the city’s finance committee. In its first two years, it couldn’t quite make up for its costs with merely $143,000 in its first year and $189,000 in the second. The trend however seems to be going in a positive direction. This year, the city budgeted $225,000, which considered operations as well as start-up costs.
Earlier in the season, both the city and the DCBA helped CARD get into the swing of things before handing over the reins.
Grimm said that because it was CARD’s first season running the ice rink, the budgeting was looser than in previous years to help the district get its bearings.
“We looked at operating costs but didn’t really make a (strict) budget because we took it on kind of late,” Grimm said. “The budget was pretty soft this year.”
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The ice rink officially opened on Nov. 17, roughly on par with previous years, and its last day will be today. Grimm noted that the final numbers in terms of ticket sales and rink income will be released later in the week. Consistent rains dampened any hopes of having the rink open during the day on Saturday, but Grimm said the final day is expected to have a good turnout.
Throughout the season, the rink hosted a number of events such as a silent disco and theme nights, and it was open during the popular Christmas Preview. Grimm said all of the events ended up selling out on tickets.
“I’m just so grateful for the community and being able to offer this wonderful experience,” Grimm said. “We had two wedding proposals, which was super cute. It was a huge collaboration with the city and the Downtown Chico Business Association. and we’re looking forward to doing it again next winter.”
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