The wait to skate is over.
Following about 2 1/2 years of construction, Florida Hospital Center Ice in Wesley Chapel has opened its doors.
(Fred Bellet)
The 150,500-square-foot, two-story complex, at 3173 Cypress Ridge Blvd., is off Interstate 75 at the State Road 56 interchange in Wesley Chapel.
The facility had its “soft” opening on Jan. 26, where more than 300 people turned out for the first evening public skating session.
A ribbon cutting ceremony, meanwhile, was held on Jan. 25.
Labeled the largest ice sports facility in the Southeastern U.S., the complex’s main attraction is its five ice rinks. That includes an Olympic rink (200 feet by 100 feet), three National Hockey League-sized rinks (200 feet by 85 feet) and a mini rink; one of the NHL pads has a multipurpose floor for other sports, including soccer, inline hockey and box lacrosse.
The unveil of the highly anticipated venue has been a long time coming.
It was expected to open in October 2015. However, various permitting and technological setbacks delayed the $28 million capital investment project.
Even so, Gordie Zimmermann, managing partner of Florida Hospital Center Ice, said the facility’s development was overall “a fabulous experience.”
(Kevin Weiss)
“It was a complicated project, and involved much patience and perseverance,” said Zimmermann, who also developed the Ice Sports Forum in Brandon. “There were a tremendous amount of people involved in this.”
He added: “We are excited…to showcase to the Tampa Bay community the most modern and high-tech skating complex in the Southeast.”
With a relative dearth of ice complexes in the Bay Area, Center Ice is forecasted as an economic driver for both Wesley Chapel and Pasco County.
Case in point: the county has five hotels in development, including two directly adjacent to the complex.
Officials believe the massive facility will attract 1.5 million to 2 million visitors annually, with 40 percent coming from outside Tampa Bay.
The facility, too, is expected to attract international hockey tournaments and non-sports activities such as dog shows and graduation ceremonies.
“This is an amazing asset we have right here in our very own backyard,” said Hope Allen, president and CEO of The Greater Wesley Chapel Chamber of Commerce.
Pasco County Commission Chairman Mike Moore said small and large business owners, along with hotels, restaurants and retail outlets, will benefit substantially as a direct result of the new venue.
“It will be a major destination here in Pasco county, and the entire region,” Moore said.
Florida Hospital Center Ice also received a seal of approval from the Tampa Bay Lightning, who’ve jumped aboard as program rink sponsors.
Former Lightning great Dave Andreychuk, now the organization’s vice president of corporate and community affairs, said the ice complex will buoy the sport of hockey in the region.
“There were four ice surfaces in a matter of 50 miles, until this came along,” Andreychuk said. “This is a huge opportunity for us to continue to grow the game, and for us to make sure that kids in this area have the opportunity…to learn a great game.”
He added: “This is going to be a community building that everybody here in the Wesley Chapel and Pasco area will use. It’s not just for developing kids to play hockey or girls to learn figure skating, but it’s going to be an awesome place for all of us here.”
Previously, many Pasco residents would trek to the Ice Sports Forum in Brandon to get their hockey and skating fix. Others may have used the Clearwater Ice Arena or the Tampa Bay Skating Academy in Oldsmar.
“As a resident just down the road from here, I understand what this building means,” Andreychuk said.
Laura Bohannon, a Wesley Chapel-based Realtor, said the facility is now an “anchor” for the community, and will be a windfall to local real estate sales.
“It’s huge for this area,” Bohannon said. “People want to be where there’s a new, exciting thing. People are coming here from different places because of what this (facility) has to offer.”
That effect is already apparent.
Toni Ravens, a Land O’ Lakes resident, said her family moved from Raleigh, North Carolina, last year as a direct result of the ice complex.
“We were moving to Florida, and we narrowed our search by this facility,” she said. “We promised the children before the move that they would stay in hockey.”
Though open and operable, the entire complex is still not fully complete.
The facility’s Rink B doesn’t yet have ice poured, and finishing touches are still being made to the 2,600-square-foot fitness center. The full-service restaurant, Top Shelf Sports Lounge, is slated to open sometime in February.
In total, 20 full-time and 30 part-time employees will be working at the facility.
Programming registrations are ongoing.
For more information, visit FloridaHospitalCenterIce.com.
By The Numbers
- Capital Investment-$28 million
- Property-13.5 acres
- Floor Space-150,500 square feet
- Running Track-six lanes; 90 yards
- Locker Rooms-16
- Benches-75
- Rental Skates-702 pairs
- Curling Stones-90
- Hockey Nets-10 sets (regular and youth)
- Sport Ice Resurfacers-3.5
- Fixed seats in the main National Hockey League regulation rink-425
- Audio/Video Capabilities—Four video walls and 60-plus 55-inch monitors
- Restaurant seats-90
Facility Overview
- One Olympic-size rink (200 feet by 100 feet)
- Two North American standard-size rinks (200 feet by 85 feet)
- One multipurpose sports floor/ice pad-multipurpose pad conversion
- A 2,600-square-foot fitness facility
- An indoor sprint track and conditioning area
- An onsite athletic trainers and sports performance program
- Five corporate/birthday party rooms
- A family sport restaurant (Top Shelf Sports Lounge)
- Snack bar
- Pro shop (Rinkside Sports)
- Spectator observation areas
- Private and public locker rooms
- A hockey skills training area
- A revolving entrance door to control inside temperature environment
Florida Hospital Center Ice will have numerous programs and uses, including:
- Local, regional, national and international hockey tournaments
- University and high school teams’ practices and games
- Recreational leagues
- Hockey development programs
- Roller and street hockey
- Camps, clinics, multisport training
- Figure skating
- Public skating, birthday parties
- Sled hockey
- Curling
- Indoor sports: box lacrosse, volleyball, basketball
- Sports Performance Enhancement and Injury Prevention programs
- Corporate events, public meetings
Published February 1, 2017
