Greg Pedrick has resurfaced lots of rinks working as an ice technician over the past decade, and he said the sense of satisfaction never gets old. “It’s always cool,” Pedrick told CTV News Wednesday. “It’s a fresh sheet of ice, and it’s always an opportunity for a new moment, a new player coming on the ice.” And there’s been plenty of those moments over the past couple weeks at the brand-new Tank Traders Arena in La Salle. “It’s built by the community and by the community, and that gives me a special sense of pride to do right for this community,” Pedrick said. “To bring them a place that they can be proud of and that they want to be at.” The 405-seat hockey and ringette rink officially opened over the weekend roughly 20 years after residents started campaigning for an indoor rink in the bedroom community. That’s around the same time that Dee Romijn, the facility director of Tank Traders Mulitiplex, moved to La Salle. “We’ve probably more than doubled the population since then, and the amenities continue to grow with this late edition of the arena,” Romijn told CTV News. “That’s just adding to the future of what LaSalle is becoming.” Romijn said a $2.5 million provincial grant in 2023 was a turning point for the project, but she also credits La Salle residents, businesses, and organizations for stepping up. “We’re tipping the scales at about $1.8 million to date, which is still ongoing,” Romijn explained. “Fundraising efforts are still ongoing, but it’s been extremely successful. The community has been very, very supportive.” Several minor hockey and ringette teams from the Rural Municipality of Macdonald will play and practice at Tank Traders Arena this season, and Greg Pedrick said that could be a blessing on cold winter mornings. “You don’t need to make that 7 a.m. trek from La Salle to Starbuck or to Sanford anymore. You can just hop on [provincial road] 247 and you’re right here.” Romijn added the arena will also host public skating events and open ice times for community members.
