Roller rink reopens, with first public skate Friday

The nondenominational TouchPoint Alaska Ministries has reopened the roller rink on Bennett Street, with the first public skate night set for 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. on Friday, May 3.

Georgianna and Richard Buhler, of TouchPoint, are focused on seeing how things go the first night, which they are calling "Roll on the Rock," but they hope to eventually have regularly scheduled skate nights every Friday and Saturday. "That's still the plan," Georgianna Buhler said. "Right now, we're starting small."

They held a soft opening of the rink on April 26 for the Harbor Light Church youth group. "They're my guinea pigs," she said. "They're my test run."

The admission fee is tentatively planned for $5 per child and $7 per adult, while non-skating adults accompanying kids will be admitted for free. Children 9 and under must be accompanied by an adult. "I don't have it nailed down yet," Buhler said. "It will definitely be affordable."

Skates will be available to rent.

The reopened rink, which had been operated by the Church of Gold until it closed about five years ago, provides the town with a second skating opportunity.

The parks and recreation department opens the community center gym for skate night from 5 to 7 p.m. on Saturdays, with plans for the final night May 25.

"It's just based on volunteer availability," said recreation coordinator Devyn Johnson, who added that the weekly event has been held during the spring for the past two or three years.

Experienced skater Jaime Perry will be at the community center to help beginners. Residents should bring their own skates and safety equipment, and there will be a drop-in fee of $3 for youth and $5 for adults. Children 12 and under must be accompanied by an adult.

The Buhlers last year purchased the Church of God property, including the roller rink, for TouchPoint Ministries. While another of their long-term goals is to establish a day care center by early 2025, their top priority has been to bring back the popular roller rink.

Georgianna Buhler said she and her husband want to see what happens in the next couple of weeks before they determine a regular schedule or plan any special events at the rink.

While the Buhlers had hoped to have everything ready for the public several weeks earlier, restoration of the flooring, walkways and stairwells took longer than expected.

Now that those are completed, the next phase will focus on updating the 50-year-old heating systems of propane gas for the rink and electric baseboard heaters in the church. They want to look for a way to cut heating costs and also make sure the buildings are fully insulated.

"That's our next project, to have them here by September or October," Georgianna Buhler said.

For more information on Parks and Recreation's open skate night at the community center, call 907-874-2444 or visit their website at wrangellak.myrec.com.

For more information on TouchPoint's roller rink, call 907-305-0566, visit their Facebook page or website touchpointalaska.org, or email info@touchpointalaska.org.