{"id":797113,"date":"2019-06-25T16:22:27","date_gmt":"2019-06-25T22:22:27","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.summitdaily.com\/?p=367926"},"modified":"2019-06-25T16:22:27","modified_gmt":"2019-06-25T22:22:27","slug":"dillon-parks-committee-wants-ice-castles-out-of-town-park-because-of-concerns-about-damage","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/ksmt\/local-news\/dillon-parks-committee-wants-ice-castles-out-of-town-park-because-of-concerns-about-damage\/","title":{"rendered":"Dillon parks committee wants Ice Castles out of Town Park because of concerns about damage"},"content":{"rendered":"<div class=\"swift-gallery p402_hide\" readability=\"6.549504950495\">\n<ul id=\"imageGallery-367926-647\" class=\"gallery list-unstyled\">\n<li data-thumb=\"https:\/\/cdn.summitdaily.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2019\/06\/IceCastles-SDN-062619-3-150x150.jpg\" data-src=\"https:\/\/cdn.summitdaily.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2019\/06\/IceCastles-SDN-062619-3-1024x768.jpg\" data-sub-html=\"Sawyer D'Argonne \/ sdargonne@summitdaily.com | Construction crews at the Dillon Town Park removing trees before the tennis courts are moved as part of the Town Park Master Plan, on June 24, 2019.\" class=\"h-100\" readability=\"-0.5\">\n<div class=\"caption\" readability=\"10\">\n<p><strong>Construction crews at the Dillon Town Park removing trees before the tennis courts are moved as part of the Town Park Master Plan, on June 24, 2019.<\/strong><br \/>Sawyer D&#8217;Argonne \/ sdargonne@summitdaily.com<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"row no-gutters h-100\">\n<div class=\"col my-auto\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.summitdaily.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2019\/06\/IceCastles-SDN-062619-3-1024x768.jpg\" alt=\"Construction crews at the Dillon Town Park removing trees before the tennis courts are moved as part of the Town Park Master Plan, on June 24, 2019. \"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/li>\n<li data-thumb=\"https:\/\/cdn.summitdaily.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2019\/06\/IceCastles-SDN-062619-1-150x150.jpg\" data-src=\"https:\/\/cdn.summitdaily.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2019\/06\/IceCastles-SDN-062619-1-1024x768.jpg\" data-sub-html=\"Sawyer D'Argonne \/ sdargonne@summitdaily.com | The Dillon Town Park on Monday, June 24, 2019.\" class=\"h-100\" readability=\"-1\">\n<div class=\"caption\" readability=\"9\">\n<p><strong>The Dillon Town Park on Monday, June 24, 2019.<\/strong><br \/>Sawyer D&#8217;Argonne \/ sdargonne@summitdaily.com<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"row no-gutters h-100\">\n<div class=\"col my-auto\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.summitdaily.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2019\/06\/IceCastles-SDN-062619-1-1024x768.jpg\" alt=\"The Dillon Town Park on Monday, June 24, 2019. \"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/li>\n<li data-thumb=\"https:\/\/cdn.summitdaily.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2019\/06\/IceCastles-SDN-062619-2-150x150.jpg\" data-src=\"https:\/\/cdn.summitdaily.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2019\/06\/IceCastles-SDN-062619-2-1024x768.jpg\" data-sub-html=\"Sawyer D'Argonne \/ sdargonne@summitdaily.com | The Dillon Town Park on Monday, June 24, 2019.\" class=\"h-100\" readability=\"-1\">\n<div class=\"caption\" readability=\"9\">\n<p><strong>The Dillon Town Park on Monday, June 24, 2019.<\/strong><br \/>Sawyer D&#8217;Argonne \/ sdargonne@summitdaily.com<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"row no-gutters h-100\">\n<div class=\"col my-auto\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.summitdaily.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2019\/06\/IceCastles-SDN-062619-2-1024x768.jpg\" alt=\"The Dillon Town Park on Monday, June 24, 2019. \"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p class=\"caption-toggle\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.summitdaily.com\/news\/dillon-parks-committee-wants-ice-castles-out-of-town-park-because-of-concerns-about-damage\/#\" class=\"show-captions\">Show Captions<\/a><a href=\"https:\/\/www.summitdaily.com\/news\/dillon-parks-committee-wants-ice-castles-out-of-town-park-because-of-concerns-about-damage\/#\" class=\"hide-captions\">Hide Captions<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p>DILLON \u2014 It\u2019s no secret that the Dillon ice castles have been a major hit for the town over the past two winters.<\/p>\n<p>Thousands of visitors flock to Dillon to take in the frozen and sparkling attraction, the only Colorado town that Ice Castles LLC calls home. Businesses in the town core enjoy the extra visitors purchasing hotel rooms and making their way to restaurants and bars. And the town itself has seen considerable growth in sales tax revenue and media exposure over the winter months.<\/p>\n<p>But for some, the amenity comes with too high a cost. The Dillon Parks and Recreation Advisory Committee has voiced serious concerns about the ice castles being built on top of Town Park and think it might be time to relocate the attraction.<\/p>\n<p>The issue initially came up last year when committee members spoke out about damage to Town Park following Ice Castles\u2019 first year in Dillon. The topic returned to conversation earlier this month after committee member Lucinda Burns addressed the problem in front of the Dillon Town Council.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe got a tour of the Town Park after the contract ended with Ice Castles, and we were really discouraged to look at the condition of it,\u201d said Burns said. \u201cWe are also discouraged with the amount of time the ice castles have taken up \u2014 weeks and months that the ice castles use up the park and make it unavailable to the general public. We\u2019re really excited about the master plan for the Town Park, so we are also unanimously concerned about potential damage after the work starts going in on the park.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Barb Richard, the committee\u2019s secretary, said that on top of numerous brown spots at the park where the grass hasn\u2019t yet recovered from the castles, the weight of all the ice has created lumps in the ground that make it more difficult to use for parkgoers.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cOf course the weight of the ice castles is pretty tough on the turf,\u201d Richard said. \u201cIf you go look at it right now, there are spots where the walls were, where there was a ton of weight, and it harms the turf field and makes it wobbly and harder to run on if you want to go out and play on it.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Of note, Richard said the committee felt Ice Castles did a considerably better job with park upkeep this year than last, but with major park improvements scheduled through next year, it\u2019s members feel future iterations may be counterintuitive to the long-term plans of the park.<\/p>\n<p>The town began work on phase one of the Town Park Master Plan this week \u2014 a $1.2 million project that largely includes infrastructure improvements to roadways and parking surrounding the park along with the relocation of some of the tennis courts. While this winter isn\u2019t the biggest concern, more substantial improvements are coming to the park next year. The town has more than $1 million budgeted for a new multiuse field and playground, and committee members aren\u2019t keen on the idea of building over the new investments.&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe ice castles are obviously a money maker for the town and bring people in during the wintertime\u201d committee vice chair Eric Nicholds said. \u201cMy biggest issue is the impact on the park. We\u2019re planning on a big overhaul on the park that\u2019s been in the works for a while. Next year, public works and us are planning on having the whole park redone. Once that\u2019s done, I don\u2019t think we\u2019ll want the ice castles there.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Richard said the committee doesn\u2019t necessarily want Ice Castles out of town and already has begun looking at potential alternate locations. She said the committee also is hoping to pitch other ways to activate the Town Park during winter, including light displays among other ideas.<\/p>\n<p>If the town does decide to move away from Ice Castles in the future, finding alternatives to drive visitors to the town core likely would remain a priority. The castles have been a boon to businesses around the area, with sales tax numbers jumping almost 29% in January compared with the same month in 2016 and more than 21% in December compared with December 2017, the year before the first ice castles made their way to town.<\/p>\n<p>Ultimately, the decision will fall to the Dillon Town Council. Dillon\u2019s director of marketing and communications Kerstin Anderson said Ice Castles representatives will be in town early next month to make their proposal to return for next winter.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cOnce we build (the park), we want people to come,\u201d Richard said. \u201cOnce we build what the community envisioned, it\u2019d be a heck of a risk to harm that. \u2026 We really want to see the beautiful improvements.\u201d<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.summitdaily.com\/news\/dillon-parks-committee-wants-ice-castles-out-of-town-park-because-of-concerns-about-damage\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">via:: Summit Daily<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Construction crews at the Dillon Town Park removing trees before the tennis courts are moved as part of the Town Park Master Plan, on June 24, 2019.Sawyer D&#8217;Argonne \/ sdargonne@summitdaily.com The Dillon Town Park on Monday, June 24, 2019.Sawyer D&#8217;Argonne \/ sdargonne@summitdaily.com The Dillon Town Park on Monday, June 24, 2019.Sawyer D&#8217;Argonne \/ sdargonne@summitdaily.com Show [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[99],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-797113","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","6":"category-local-news"},"acf":[],"publishpress_future_action":{"enabled":false,"date":"2026-06-17 05:15:04","action":"change-status","newStatus":"draft","terms":[],"taxonomy":"category","extraData":[]},"publishpress_future_workflow_manual_trigger":{"enabledWorkflows":[]},"distributor_meta":false,"distributor_terms":false,"distributor_media":false,"distributor_original_site_name":"KSMT The Mountain","distributor_original_site_url":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/ksmt","push-errors":false,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/ksmt\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/797113","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/ksmt\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/ksmt\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/ksmt\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/ksmt\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=797113"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/ksmt\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/797113\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/ksmt\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=797113"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/ksmt\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=797113"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/ksmt\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=797113"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}