Curling capital: Huntsville OKs $44M Ice Center expansion
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The Huntsville Ice Sports Center will more than double in size. Image: Courtesy of City of Huntsville
Huntsville is making big moves at its Ice Sports Center, approving a $44.6-million plan June 26 that's set to double its size by early 2027.
Why it matters: The expansion plan will turn the ISC into a regional destination for ice sports, especially curling. Rocket City Curling Club President Matt Smith tells Axios the closest comparable facility is in Detroit.
- The City Council's decision Thursday night got applause from a handful of members in attendance. Another 20 to 30 members were watching online, Smith said.
- Smith said he's already heard from the CEO of USA Curling that as soon as the doors open, they'll start getting national events.
What they're saying: "They have done everything possible to make this hands down the best curling facility in the South," Smith said.
Driving the news: The ISC is bursting at the seams. John Hamilton, the city administrator, said the facility is so busy that they're booking rink time in the middle of the night, leaving the general public squeezed out.
- "What we have right now is two sheets of ice, and that's great, but it's not nearly enough," Hamilton said at Thursday's meeting.
- The plan was funded in the city's 1990 capital plan and has been part of the John Hunt Park master plan since 2011, he said.
Zoom in: Work includes adding a dedicated curling facility with five lanes, a second-floor warm lobby that can be used for other events and men's and women's locker rooms.
- On the opposite side of the existing facility, the expansion includes an almost 80,000-square-foot arena featuring nearly 1,300 seats, a dedicated lobby and entrance, a concourse, and additional locker rooms.
- In total, it will add almost 119,000 square feet to the existing 83,934-square-foot facility, set for completion in late 2026 or early 2027.
- The existing facility will get minor renovations including an upgrade to the entry vestibule, added offices and patio expansions.
Zoom out: Rocket City Curling Club has 130 members, but with limited ice time, only about 80 get on the ice weekly, Smith said. Normally, they get the 7pm and 8:30pm slots on Saturday nights, finishing up around 10pm. That's about 3% of the ISC schedule time.
- The facility has other limits, too, he said, like storing 3,500 lbs of curling stones in a freezer 300 feet away, which have to be carried back and forth each session.
- Still, the club sends a handful of teams to arena national championships, bringing home a bronze last year. And the ISC hosted 32 teams from as far away as Maine and Oregon in April for a national qualifying event.
Context: Every curling club's dream is to get dedicated ice, Smith said, which is fundamentally different from arena ice for hockey and other sports. Thanks to reverse osmosis, the ice is crystal clear and very flat — varying in elevation by only one-eighth of an inch over 100 feet.
Yes, but: Council member Michelle Watkins noted that Huntsville has numerous first-class sports facilities, but is lagging behind nearby communities like Albertville and Cullman when it comes to one sport: basketball.