Skating Into The Top 3, Hess Ice Rink Looks To Cash In

A local ice rink, Hess Ice Rink in New Castle, has been selected as one of the three finalists for a “Renovate the Rink” contest co-hosted by the Pittsburgh Penguins.

Voting opened Friday, February 1st and runs through Friday, February 22nd.

This contest was introduced in October of 2018 as a new contest. This contest is hosted by Pittsburgh Penguins and Pittsburgh Commercial Construction (PittComm). The winner will receive up to $100,000 in goods and services to renovate their rink.

There were over 400 entries were received, and 16 rinks were nominated before the finalists were selected.

Mark Bucci, the Parks and Recreation director for Neshannock Township, says that they truly owe this to the community as well as social media. Once families heard of this competition, they began nominating and telling the ice rinks story.

Dallas Star and Wampum native Stephen Johns gave his endorsement on Twitter last week, endorsing the arena ‘where it all began’ for the 26-year-old defenseman.

Hess Ice Rink… where it all began! Go vote! https://t.co/DewlrQ3Tgg

— Stephen Johns (@stjohns28) January 31, 2019

In addition to Hess Ice Rink, the other finalists named are Kirk S. Nevin Arena, in Greensburg, PA, and The Ice Mine, Connellsville, PA.

Hess Ice Rink in New Castle has been the only rink in Lawrence County since it opened in 1991. The rink is home to the Lawrence County Lightning and several adult hockey and competitive figure skating organizations.  Five high school hockey teams call the rink home. Most recently, in November, a Hess Figure Skating Club was formed. People from all over Western Pennsylvania and some from Eastern Ohio come to the rink for their hockey and figure skating teams.

A ninety-second video highlight the local Hess Ice Rink can be view here.

The rink plans on using the money they win towards locker room renovations as well as some additional seating.

“It’s a much overdue situation, this [money] would really help us out,” said Bucci.

Fans may check out a brief video about each rink and vote for the one they feel is most deserving at www.pittsburghpenguins.com/renovatetherink.

Voters can vote once a day until the contest ends on February 22, however, they will be asked the question as to why the rink deserves this money.