Brown Bears fans celebrate Luke Radetic’s goal in the third period by throwing the customary fish on the ice Friday, March 24, 2017, at the Soldotna Regional Sports Complex. (Photo by Jeff Helminiak/Peninsula Clarion)

Brown Bears fans celebrate Luke Radetic’s goal in the third period by throwing the customary fish on the ice Friday, March 24, 2017, at the Soldotna Regional Sports Complex. (Photo by Jeff Helminiak/Peninsula Clarion)

Soldotna Regional Sports Complex will open for winter, with some changes

City officials presented their COVID-19 mitigation plan for the sports center

A spectator cap, closed locker rooms and shuttered water fountains are among the changes visitors can expect to see in the Soldotna Regional Sports Complex when it welcomes patrons on Sept. 28.

Soldotna Parks and Recreation Director Andrew Carmichael and Soldotna City Manager Stephanie Queen presented the facility’s COVID-19 mitigation plan to the Soldotna City Council on Wednesday, which outlines the specific steps being taken to help prevent the spread of COVID-19 in the building and sets limits on the number of people allowed to participate in various ice activities.

Other changes include a one-way route used to enter and leave the rink and temporary restrictions on the amount of time people can spend in communal areas before and after their ice time.

ADVERTISEMENT
0 seconds of 0 secondsVolume 0%
Press shift question mark to access a list of keyboard shortcuts
00:00
00:00
00:00
 

For the first two weeks of the facility being open, the amount of time between skating sessions will be increased from 15 minutes to 30 minutes, during which areas shared by groups will be disinfected. Rink users can only arrive at the facility 15 minutes before their scheduled ice time and must leave within 15 minutes after their ice time ends. Carmichael said they plan to identify kinks in the new protocols during the first two weeks the time limit is in place, and will hopefully return to 15-minute buffers at the end of the two weeks.

People using the ice will be told to arrive at the facility dressed except for skates, which they will be allowed to put on once inside. Additional clocks will be placed around the facility to help patrons keep track of the 15 minutes.

A one-way rink access route will also be used. According to Carmichael, players will enter through the main doors where they will be “funnelled” by curtains to the back team room hall. Once there, they will be able to put on their skates in chairs spaced 6 feet apart before entering the rink. Once players are on the ice, a fogging disinfection machine will be used to sanitize the back hall. When leaving the ice, players will exit through the front lobby where they will be able to take off their skates, again in chairs 6 feet apart.

Communal spaces and bathrooms will be touch-point disinfected every two hours, hand-sanitizing stations will be added to high-traffic areas and staff will wear face masks. The building will also be cleaned following CDC guidelines each business day.

Registration and payments will be conducted using credit cards only and skate rentals will be provided through a shield, with skates disinfected between each use.

While the council agreed that the plan looked thorough, several members raised concern about its 40-spectator limit. One member who voiced their concern about the cap was Pamela Parker, who said it may cause backlash from the community.

“I think it’s going to be really challenging to tell families they can’t come and watch and support their kiddos,” Parker said.

Carmichael said that when it comes to determining how many people to allow into the facility, there isn’t an easy answer.

“I can’t use a mean, median or a mode score to identify how many people I should put in the building for our facility with so many nuances … because I don’t have a metric to do that with,” Carmichael said. “It’s about a comfort level and about a perception.”

There was some disagreement about how stringent mask rules should be within the facility.

Jordan Chilson said he didn’t know if strongly encouraging people in the facilities to wear masks would be enough, saying that he’s been in places where people did not wear masks despite them being recommended.

More in News

Welcome messages in multiple languages are painted on windows at the University of Alaska Anchorage at the start of the semester in January. (University of Alaska Anchorage photo)
Juneau refugee family gets ‘leave immediately’ notice; 4 people affiliated with UAA have visas revoked

Actions part of nationwide sweep as Trump ignores legal orders against detentions, deportations.

The Soldotna Field House is seen on a sunny Monday, March 31, 2025, in Soldotna, Alaska. (Jake Dye/Peninsula Clarion)
Soldotna sets fees, staffing, policy for field house

After a grand opening ceremony on Aug. 16, the facility will be expected to operate in seasons.

Alaska State Troopers logo.
Officers who shot and killed man in Kasilof found ‘justified’

The three officers were found to be justified in their force by the Office of Special Prosecutions.

A screenshot of a Zoom meeting where Superintendent Clayton Holland (right) interviews Dr. Henry Burns (left) on Wednesday, April 9, while Assistant Superintendent Kari Dendurent (center) takes notes.
KPBSD considers 4 candidates for Homer High School principal position

School district held public interviews Wednesday, April 9.

Organizer George Matz monitors shorebirds at the former viewing platform at Mariner Park Lagoon. The platform no longer exists, after being removed by landowner Doyon during the development of the area. (Photo courtesy of Kachemak Bay Birders)
Kachemak Bay Birders kicks off 17th year of shorebird monitoring project

The first monitoring session of 2025 will take place Saturday.

The Alaska State Senate meets Thursday, where a bill boosting per-student education funding by $1,000 was introduced on the floor. (Mark Sabbatini / Juneau Empire)
Education bill with $1,000 BSA hike — and nothing else — gets to Senate floor; veto by Dunleavy expected

Senate president says action on lower per-student education funding increase likely if veto override fails.

A table used by parties to a case sits empty in Courtroom 4 of the Kenai Courthouse in Kenai, Alaska, on Wednesday, Dec. 11, 2024. (Jake Dye/Peninsula Clarion)
Trial for troopers indicted for felony assault delayed to 2026

The change comes four months after a judge set a “date-certain” trial for June.

Members of the Alaska State Employees Association and AFSCME Local 52 holds a protest at the Alaska State Capitol on Friday, Feb. 14, 2025. (Jasz Garrett / Juneau Empire file photo)
State employee salaries fall short of levels intended to be competitive, long-delayed study finds

31 of 36 occupation groups are 85%-98% of target level; 21 of 36 are below public/private sector average.

Most Read