Overview
The Fleet Skating Center is located near the City Hall in downtown Providence. It stands in Kennedy Plaza, on a site that was formerly the Cove Basin of Providence. From the time that the basin was filled in the 1890s until a century later, when the skating rink was built, this area of Providence turned increasingly into a transit hub. With the "renaissance" of the 1980s and 1990s, this took new forms, as more civic and business activity was concentrated downtown. Behind this renaissance, as well as behind the skating rink, stands the architectural team William D. Warner Architects and Planners.
The facility is an outdoor skating rink with a total surface of 13,875 feet. The entrance is in Kennedy Plaza, through a pavilion sporting two towers -- a reference to those of the 1848 Union Passenger Depot which graced this downtown plaza until 1896 -- and decked in brick veneer. According to the website of the construction company, the skating area has a "36-inch structural concrete foundation" and "4-inch thick slab encasing refrigerant tubing."
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.
Architectural Team
The architectural team was lead by William "Bill" Warner, the architect responsible for much of the "Providence Renaissance" in the 1980s and 1990s. Bill Warner is the designer behind the relocation of the Providence River, a project which received a silver medal of the 2003 Rudy Bruner Award for Urban Excellence and a 1995 Presidential Design Award. It is this project that engendered the Waterplace Park and the new Providence Riverwalk. Warner is also part of the Highway Relocation Project, which will move the downtown section of Route 195.
The Project
"Would you like to savor 'a little bit of Rockefeller Center' in Rhode Island's capital city?" (Providence Journal, October 18, 1997)
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. The Providence Journal article which presents the Mayor's idea for a future skating rink downtown frames the project in the terms of a competition with the ice rink at the Rockefeller Center in New York City. Despite the fact that the NYC skating rink covers 7,198 feet, the article touts the Providence one as "a 14,000-square-foot surface, or nearly three times the size of the surface at the Rockefeller Skating rink, which is 5,000 square feet."
Later, this assertion was tempered, and articles in the Providence Journal refer to an area that is "twice," "roughly twice," or "more than twice" the size of the Rockefeller Center ice rink. Interestingly enough, however, the Providence Warwick Convention and Visitors Bureau continue the myth of thrice the size in one of their 2003 brochures: "Three times larger than New York's Rockefeller Center, this outdoor skating center in the heart of downtown Providence offers ice skating in the cooler months and inline skating in the warmer months."
The idea that the Fleet Skating Rink have a television station on the spot seems indebted to the "Live from Rockefeller Center" Today show. In 1998 the city of Providence partnered with Channel 10, which was to broadcast from the skating center with the rink as a backdrop. Nancy Derrig, Parks Superintendent and the one who supervised the project until it was transferred to the Civic Center Authority, stated that "What the station gets is to partner with the biggest news of the year."
The First Five Years
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." Young people also enjoy the opportunity of a fun job outdoors, rink employees the chance of a visit by the Mayor or a former Brown President, while some enthusiastic young people use the opportunity to propose to the loved one to the tune of a song in stock at the skating rink. Still there are others who enjoy yet another aspect of the skating rink, namely the fact that it managed to chance the reputation of downtown. As predicted by one writer of the Providence Journal in Nov. 1998, the outdoor rink turned the downtown not only into a more fun area, but also into a safer area.
The rink has also been geared to attract Rhode Islanders from places other than Providence, as well as tourists from all over. During opening weekend, people came from all over Rhode Island, as well as from Massachusetts and New York. Six hundred skaters tested the ice before 2 p.m. on the first Saturday after its opening of November 24, 1998.
Envisioned by Mayor Vincent A. Cianci Jr. as a facility which would function year-round and which would make a profit starting with the first year, the rink, in fact, was less successful financially than predicted, partly due to seemingly always warmer than expected weather in the winter months, and partly to the fact that, despite the mayor's vision of a place which would host "off season roller-skating and in-line skating, as well as concerts, art shows and ballroom dancing," the rink has been mostly vacant outside the winter months.
Nevertheless, from its opening in November 1998 until the present, the skating rink has seen the emergence of an IceFire Winter Carnival -- as a counterpart to the WaterFire events -- with performances by well known ice skaters, including World Champion Brian Osner in 2003. It has also been hosting skating Santas, skating lessons, and, more recently, skateboarders. With a function that is constantly being explored, the Fleet Skating Center takes an active part in the revitalization of downtown and the redefinition of Providence as a city.
Selective Bibliography -- Providence Journal Articles
"Rink supervisor puts memories on ice; From marriage proposals to filming for the TV series Providence, Stephen J. Moise has seen some special moments at the Fleet Skating Center." Linda Borg. 1-13-03:B1
"Skateboard paradise." 6-14-03
"The brink of a rink; Ogden Entertainment is selected to manage the city's new ice skating rink." Ken Mingis. 5-18-98:C1
"4 bidders to manage skating rink demur on fees; The city's call for a minimum license fee of $1.48 million is shrugged off in favor of various profit-sharing proposals." 1-28-98:C1
"The ice rink cometh." 9-2-98:B1
"Ice rink-red ink? The skating rink's finances remain cloudy, especially the issue of whether the rink will require an operating subsidy from taxpayers." Gregory Smith. 9-22-98:C1
"Long lines crowded ice, but worth the wait; Fleet Skating Center's first weekend business day is a busy one as 600 skaters take to the ice by 2 on a beautiful afternoon." 11-29-98:B3
"A demonstration of joy." 11-30-98:B4
"Kennedy Plaza skating rink is no longer on thin ice; The City Council legalizes publicly owned skating rinks." Gregory Smith. 12-10-97:C1
"The Man Who Moves Rivers Architect Bill Warner Sets His Sights on a New Vision for Providence." 03-14-99:E1
"Long lines, crowded ice, but worth the wait; The Fleet Skating Center's first weekend business day is a busy one as 600 skaters take to the ice by 2 on a beautiful afternoon." Karen Lee Ziner. 11-29-98:B3
"City officials paint ice rink in the black; The Finance Committee hears a glowing report that predicts a profit from the outset." C.J. Chivers. 11-10-98:C3
"City ice rink takes on a sporting appearance; The mayor and other city officials insist the new Fleet Skating Center will not be used for hockey games. Now adult games, anyway." Gregory Smith. 10-19-98:C1
"Ice rink and live TV a dream duo, city believes; Channel 10 is considering an idea from Providence officials to open a television studio next to the downtown Fleet Skating Center." Gregory Smith. 7-26-98:E1
"Ice rink eatery deadline for bids extended; For the second time, the city gets nary a nibble at the chance to build and run a restaurant at the Fleet Ice Rink." 6-1-98: C1
"Ice rink construction bids opened despite legal dispute." Ken Mingis. 3-17-98:C6
"A New Rink, A New Hotel." David Brussat, 11-13-97:B7
"River Relocation Wins Presidential Award." John Castellucci, 01-25-96:C3
"Ice rink construction bids opened despite legal dispute." Ken Mingis. 3-17-98:C6
"A New Rink, A New Hotel." David Brussat, 11-13-97:B7
"River Relocation Wins Presidential Award." John Castellucci, 01-25-96:C3