Successful ice rinks offer more than just skating. Be it as a temporary facility, for example during the festive season, in the middle of the urban hustle and bustle, or as a year-round experience for all generations. The second session on the 4th day of the IAKS Congress will show temporary facilities, unconventional ice rinks as well as examples from major urban centres as revitalization of public space in city centers.
photo: Shai Gil
Conrad Boychuk, Architect, Canada
Ice as an animator of the public domain – examples from major urban centres
This presentation will provide historic and current examples of the development of ice surfaces in major urban centres. The North American, Asian and European approaches illustrate different strategies but with the same goal of animating urban cores with unique seasonal, multi-generational experience. The IAKS has provided numerous examples of enhancing urban centres and this presentation extends that ongoing development to a year-round experience.
Ted Watson, Partner, MJMA, Canada
Non-traditional ice experiences – innovations in form
Peter Hirvell, Managing Director, AST Eis- und Solartechnik, Austria
Temporary installations to ice-based “placemaking”
Successful urban ice rinks do not only offer skating. To become a “place” or temporary “hot spot” , it is important that visitors can experience a variety of social activities that extend their stay at the location, giving them a reason to visit again and to spread the word about the ice rink. The experiences and activities must be attractive to visitors and ideally generate sustainable income for the operator. This presentation introduces how such activities can be integrated in urban ice rinks and highlights successful examples from well established urban ice rinks that even if they are mobile installations, they have become more or less permanent hot spots in their respective cities.
