He's big, he's purple and he's affectionately called "Barney" and thanks to him the ice at the Pitt Meadows three rinks will stay a little bit cleaner and smoother.
Shortly after Recreation Excellence was chosen as an interim operator of the Pitt Meadows Arena, interim manager Norm Kassis brought Barney over -- a purple Zamboni that was being used as a spare ice-surfacer -- to take some of the pressure off the overworked and underpaid Zambonis the arena had.
An ice-surfacer is not supposed to be used more than about 5,000 hours, but the two at the Pitt Meadows Arena have been going long after that recommendation, said Kassis.
Pitt Meadows Arena interim manager Norm Kassis takes Barney for a ride.
During the last year, the arena has gone into bankruptcy, been taken over by a number company, been subject of a legal battle involving a bank and the City of Pitt Meadows, and now is under the management of Recreation Excellence.
Kassis took over as interim manager of the arena on Dec. 19, midway through the ice sport season and just before Christmas. It's been a whirlwind trying to get a handle on what needs to be repaired or replaced, what maintenance needs to be done on the building, and what the most fair and equitable way is to allocate ice time to users.
Kassis said Recreation Excellence wants to provide a "safe, clean and enjoyable" experience for users of the arena.
"This is their sanctuary," Kassis said. Their obligation as operator is to provide an environment where people can escape from everyday life. "Our mandate is to work with the communities," Kassis said. "We don't want to go in as the ivory giant."
There are two major components to an ice arena, Kassis said, refrigeration and ice-surfacers.
The City of Pitt Meadows has put aside $200,000 for repairs to the arena, but parks and leisure general manager Mike Murray said a lot of the repairs will be "real basic stuff that people won't necessarily see." For example, the ice plant - the machinery under the ice sheet in the blue arena, which is sand-based -- needs to be repaired.
Replacing it with a concrete surface would cost about three-quarters of a million dollars, Kassis estimated, but in the meantime the ice needs to be thawed and the clamps on the pipes checked for corrosion.
The wear and tear on the Zambonis by the potholes at the back of the arena convinced parks and leisure to make paving it a priority. Another top priority is to secure a new ice-surfacer -- which can be a challenge since they're not sold at the local hardward store, and they're in high demand from suppliers.
"We have our fingers on one," Kassis said. "We hope we've used our buying power." The cost of the Zamboni will be about $93,000.
The city put $42,000 into repairing the roof, which was leaking badly during the fall, and it should be ready within a few weeks, depending on the weather.
"(It should) stop the leaks so we can address the immediate issues and strengthen it for a couple years," Murray said.
The longer-term plan is to replace the roofs completely, Murray said, but the buildings have been assessed and deemed structurally sound.
"We believe this will get us a very functional facility that will serve the needs of the community for a very long time," Murray said.
The bar and restaurant on the second floor of the facility is closed, but the goal is to get it opened by September, Kassis said. But he wants to determine what the best utilization would be for the community and facility as a whole.
The staff had a lot of work on their hands and Kassis immediately identified the need to increase the level of staffing.
"Good people can only do so much," Kassis said. They've hired a full-time custodian and are looking at bringing in some part-time help as well.
Kassis said the arena could use some improvements in the overall look.
"It does need some loving care," Kassis said.
There will also be an increase in staff time to help keep the facilities cleaner.
"There certainly is a long list," Murray said. "We're going to have to prioritize all those things and tackle them one at a time."