LaSalle Landing winter loop to open to skaters next week

LaSalle Landing winter loop to open to skaters next week in Lasalle, Ont. (Rob Hindi/AM800 News)

The LaSalle Landing winter loop will officially open Friday, Nov. 28.

The winter loop, located near the Event Centre on Front Road, was expected to open last winter, however it was delayed due to some portions of the work not being completed on time.

Despite not opening the skate trail last winter, this summer the town celebrated the opening of the LaSalle Landing water feature and the loop - which has been used for walking, rollerblading, and more.

In August, council approved a structure tent to be installed at the site. The tent is completely enclosed in the winter with a heater and rubber flooring. Meanwhile in the summer, the sides of the tent will be removed and the structure will offer shade to visitors.

LaSalle mayor Crystal Meloche says they’re doing the final prep work.

“We’ve got all the matting down so everyone can walk with their skates, and then we’re going to add the water and start freezing it, and hopefully we will be ready to go next week... but either way, we’re going to have a really great celebration on that Friday evening.”

She says they don’t need it to be extremely cold outside to produce and keep the ice.

“There’s a cooling system, and we’ve already started taking that warmth out of the area so that it can make the ice. The temperature plays a small part of it because we have that, the really big part that really affects us is the sun. So, if it’s an extremely sunny day it can make the ice soft, but overall we’ll be able to produce ice throughout the winter season.”

Meloche says while the area in the summer was popular, there’s a lot of excitement around the skate trail.

“I think everyone is just really excited for that part because it’s something truly unique. In the summer months, you do have trails you can use throughout the town but there’s nowhere to skate unless you actually rent ice. So this is a chance for our residents to go out in the winter season, and skate, and enjoy themselves.”

The structure tent is already up and ready to be used.

The outdoor skate trail along with the water feature was a $9-million project.

The entire LaSalle Landing waterfront project is roughly $50-million and will include a mix of indoor and outdoor spaces, such as a walkable parkland, a festival lawn, and a sports zone.