The town of Gananoque could use a second rink, according to town officials, and there are a couple of ways to get one. One option is a motion to council to partner with the Ottawa Senators Foundation, which is currently on the books. The longer shot is the Canada 150 rink on Parliament Hill.
“The [Ottawa] Senators Foundation rink is with partners, partners in town, [and] we’re hoping that it’s going to come to Gananoque, that the funds will be available. We’re got the space, we know we’ve got the use for it,” said Brian Brooks, Gananoque’s Deputy Mayor.
Brooks said the town is on a short-list for a “Sens Rinks,” but things are still very much in the early stages. Barry Seller is with the Ottawa Senators Foundation.
“What’s key for us is that, number one, if the town is actually interested and engaged, then that’s a great start.
We meet, then we discuss what it could look like and then what we usually do for a Sens Rink is [build it with] permanent boards [and] an asphalt base, and we put up some baseball nets, so there’s hockey and skating in the winter and then there’s other activities in the summer,” Sellers said.
Brooks says Gananoque would take the Canada 150 rink if offered, but stresses the two projects are separate and have nothing to do with one another.