SAVE THE ICE CENTER OF SAN MATEO
The Ice Center of San Mateo is being threatened with closure June 1, 2013 by the landlord of the Bridgepointe Shopping Center, SPI Holding LLC

PLEASE SIGN OUR ON-LINE PETITION TO SAVE THE ICE CENTER OF SAN MATEO.

History: the Master Plan developed by the City of San Mateo in the late 1990's for the redevelopment of the Fashion Island Shopping Center included a mandate that the developer keep only the ice rink; everything else was torn down. The new shopping center became what is now Bridgepointe. Before the rink was even reopened, after agreeing to the terms of the redevelopment plan that mandated the ice rink be one condition of being allowed to build the Bridgepointe development, the then-developer petitioned the City of San Mateo to be allowed to turn that ice rink into three retail stores instead. There were several meetings of various city entities, including the City Council, regarding this request. The City of San Mateo commissioned the Sedway Group to present a report on the viability of keeping the ice rink in the plan. The Sedway Group's report said that the ice rink was indeed viable given it pay a rent that was reasonable for an ice rink, and they came up with a rent schedule based on the rent paid by the other ice rinks in the area. The City Council did allow a small modification to the wording of the master plan, and that was the inclusion of the phrase "ice rink or similar recreational uses" instead of only "ice rink". The definition of similar recreational uses adopted by the City Council says, "Any alternative facility proposed on the site of the existing ice rink building shall be of similar size, shall serve a variety of ages and both sexes and shall be designed for active sports recreation, subject to review and approval by the Planning Commission."

Current Situation: the current landlord of the Bridgepointe Shopping Center has stated they do not intend to renew the lease for the ice rink when it expires at the end of May, 2013. Instead, the landlord has petitioned the city to change the master plan to remove the "recreational use" stipulation altogether, thereby being allowed to turn the ice rink property into more retail stores. In return, the landlord would fund artificial turf installation at an existing soccer field in the city (King Center), approximately 4 miles away from the ice rink location. In addition, the landlord would provide funding for a restroom at the Mariners Island Park, about a half mile from the ice rink. Note that neither of these would meet the "ice rink or similar recreational uses" requirement of the master plan, and neither of these is actually located at the site of the existing ice rink, which is also a requirement of the master plan.

Conclusion: when the original developer agreed to keep the ice rink as a mitigation factor in return for being allowed to develop Bridgepointe, the rent paid by the ice rink was a known quantity. Yes, the rent paid by an ice rink is less than rent that can be paid by a full retail store, but that was the agreement for being allowed to build Bridgepointe in the first place. The Bridgepointe development would not have been allowed to be built without the ice rink being included. The two subsequent landlords also knew the rent paid by the ice rink and the stipulations in the master plan requiring an ice rink or "similar recreational uses" on the existing ice rink site. This type of mitigation is common when developing properties; sometimes, the developer is required to build a park, a fire station or perhaps a school. In this case, the developer was required to keep the existing ice rink because this particular location in the City of San Mateo is underserved with recreational opportunities. Turfing an existing soccer field and building a bathroom do not meet the recreational requirements of this area in the City of San Mateo, nor do these satisfy the "ice rink or similar recreational uses" requirement in the master plan.

We ask you to support us in keeping the ice rink in Bridgepointe, in having the landlord keep their word and meet the requirements of the master plan, and in bringing recreational opportunities to everyone: young and old, boys and girls, men and women, complete families skating together, church groups, boys and girls scouts, and the Adaptive P.E. classes that visit the rink regularly, just to name a few.

Thank You

Please visit our Facebook page to Save the Rink.

PLEASE SIGN OUR ON-LINE PETITION TO SAVE THE ICE CENTER OF SAN MATEO.

Perhaps hockey is of interest to you? If so, we have a Mite Learning School offered in at the Ice Center at Cupertino for ages 5 to 8. The Ice Centers offer Intro to Hockey Class, where players can learn the basics that they can use for a lifetime of fun playing the exciting sport of Ice Hockey. From there, the Ice Center has both in-house leagues and travel teams for year-around hockey action.