The City of Grande Prairie will be looking into a happy medium between residents hoping to use community rinks for hockey and those just out for a leisurely skate. The decision to find a solution for the problem comes after a member of the public urged city council to look at a safe way to relax bylaw restrictions on the matter.
Councillor Dylan Bressey says with competitive hockey being shut down, the city is seeing a lot more hockey happening on community rinks, and that’s causing conflicts with people who are out there just for a skate.
“People who are playing it are playing it in organized leagues that are currently shut down, so it seems to be a COVID-19 issue we are having right now,” he says.
Bressey adds the current bylaw prohibits hockey on rinks that aren’t created for it, and, while that’s usually not a problem, with restrictions shutting down organized hockey it’s creating issues. He suggests that it is something worth looking at going forward, simply because there are problems being faced by people who are looking to use community rinks for their designated purpose.
“Just because there are more people looking to play hockey and that means they’re playing it in more areas that they’re not usually playing it in.”
It’s expected city officials will update members of city council on the issue at their January 25th meeting.