Overview (cont'd)
The idea of a skating rink was in the air since the 1970s, when two plans for downtown Providence conceived of such an ice rink. The current project was called for since 1996, and announced by the Mayor Vincent A. Cianci Jr. on October 17, 1997.
Reception was warm on the part of the Providence inhabitants from all neighborhoods. According to one Providence Journal article from 1998, "People who say that haven't been to downtown Providence in years are now coming to ice skate." The first five years in the life of the Fleet Skating Center proved slightly different than envisioned. The skating rink does, however, fulfill its main function of furthering the renaissance of the city. For more information on the Fleet Skating Center, please consult the following Providence Journal articles which informed this paper.
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