Razing the rink

Demolition has begun on the North River Rink in Cornwall

A building containing decades of history is coming down.

Label Construction has begun the task of demolishing the North River Rink as part of work taking place on the Cornwall bypass.

The rink will be taken down and the structure removed to improve sightlines.

Stephen Yeo, chief engineer for the province’s Department of Transportation, said the rink was too close to the curb and vehicles couldn’t see traffic approaching the roundabout as clearly.

“We looked at options of building a roundabout there so what we did was we bought the rink property,’’ Yeo said. “We (also) moved a five-unit apartment building over on to part of the land there to re-establish that so we didn’t have to tear it down . . . and put people out onto the street. Then, the rink itself is going to be demolished which is happening right now.’’

The province will also construct an access road to improve response times for the North River Fire Department heading west.

“It will give the fire department good access to the roundabout going in either direction. The time frame for them to get moving is going to be better because heading out over a four-lane cross-section of road, like it was previously, was difficult for them. The sightlines were not very good coming through the intersection.’’

The North River Rink, a landmark in the community that has been home to decades of hockey games and flea markets, was owned until recently by a McQuaid’s Trucking and Warehousing, which used it for storage. Since the province purchased the property, the company is in the process of looking to build another place to use as storage. Yeo said Label Construction, which was the low bidder on the rink demolition project, was given six weeks to complete the job.

“It could be all wrapped up before Christmas but (Label) will have some time in January, if needed, but it shouldn’t take too long.’’

Yeo said taking the rink down will change the face of the area.

“It will certainly open up the intersection. We were concerned for safety reasons for making sure that anybody in the circle and coming off the side roads or the York Point Road could see traffic that was approaching.’’

Yeo said other than the access road for the fire department, the rink property will revert to green space.

The total cost of the rink demolition is $80,000.

CAROLYN DRAKE/THE GUARDIAN Label Construction has begun a six-week project to take down the North River Rink in Cornwall. The province purchased the property as part of an effort to improve sightlines for traffic and access on to the highway for the fire department.