The Town of Ste Anne is getting some help to pay for a new outdoor skating rink.

Initially, the town received a $25,000 grant from Manitoba 150 that was going to be used for the town’s annual summer festival, Dawson Trail Days. After the event was cancelled for two consecutive years due to the pandemic, that grant money was redirected to another important project.

“Our original outdoor rink was built late 60's, early 70's, I believe,” says Recreational Services Manager, Sarah Normandeau. “It’s very derelict looking. It’s time to re-do it.”

She says the town has been talking about this project for a while. The goal has been to build the new outdoor rink in a more visible location, closer to the Zamboni area.

“We do have accessibility issues with where it is right now,” Normandeau says. “It’s not easy to get to. There’s gates, or there’s like a chain there. It's harder to get to. It's not seen as much so vandalism is kind of an issue there.”

She adds the new location, behind the Twice But Nice second-hand shop, will offer greater visibility and hopefully this will reduce the issue of vandalism.

Normandeau expects construction will begin in the next few weeks. She notes the old outdoor rink will stay in place until the new one is ready for use.

There's still more work to be done to complete the planning part of the project as well as finalizing the total cost.