NORTH PLATTE, Neb. (KNOP) -A project to open a new ice rink at Centennial Park this December is continuing to make progress towards opening on time.

The new rink will open up opportunities for North Platte residents to get out and partake in activities such as hockey and figure skating. It will also be able to host classes plus leagues for those events while also hosting special events around holidays.

The rink will be a modified size of only 90 feet in length compared to a normal rink which is 200 feet. With the size difference the organizers are planning changes to how some events will go, especially hockey leagues.

“We’ll have classes, we’ll have leagues, ” said BLu McGrath, a project organizer. “We’ll have three-on-three as compared to the normal five-on-five, we will be reducing the size, but we will definitely have leagues and have figure skating. If we can have competition, I don’t know if we have that many figure skaters yet, but hockey people seem to be coming out of the woodwork right now. ”

The particular organizers plan to have the rink running this year, and are nearing the start of the building process.

“We are planning to have the ice rink equipment delivered at the end of November, ” stated McGrath, “and so we will be setting up in the first week of December, and hopefully open for ice skating on Dec. 12. ”

The rink will feature full size handbags board, protective glass and netting, as well as a refrigerator system that will keep the ice frozen even on warmer days throughout the winter.

McGrath says that the rink is still looking for donations to help with the cost of supplies, and they will be hosting two events in late October and early November. The first is a Sports Sampler on Oct. 29 at the D& N Event Center that will feature a synthetic ice surface and allow for participants to learn some of the basics of skating and hockey, admission to the event will be free.

The second event is the Blizzard Ball Nov. 5 at the Prairie Arts Center, which will feature dinner and a silent auction, tickets are $75 for a single person or $125 for a couple, tickets for the event can be purchased on the NPIce website .

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