In a win for youth hockey, the City Council voted March 27 to put a hold on the mayor’s request to install a multipurpose gym floor instead of an ice skating surface at Founders Memorial Skating Rink.
The Somerville Youth Hockey Association submitted more than 300 signatures on a petition to save the ice sheet, which was never frozen this winter. Around a dozen association supporters, including youth wearing red, white and blue hockey sweaters and holding signs, shared the podium at a council meeting and got a round of applause after the item was severed from appropriations voting.
Somerville Youth Hockey Association spokesperson Ruth Foreman lauded councilor Jake Wilson’s efforts to send the item back to the Finance Committee, which plans to bring Jill Lathan, Department of Public Works commissioner, into future conversations.
“By having the DPW comment on the challenge of year-round usage, all facets – such as equitable access to recreation opportunities – can be carefully considered before any decision is reached. Our concern remains the creation of a viable and inclusive program that serves the entire community, and we welcome the opportunity to further the conversation,” Foreman said.
The mayor requested $168,000 in public-works free cash be moved to pay for “a multipurpose recreation hub serving all ages,” citing “the community’s demand for diverse recreational activities.” The ice could return in the future, the mayor said, but this allowed expanded programming such as fitness and wellness programs, indoor sports options such as pickleball, community events and dances, after-school and summer youth programming and intergenerational programs. Founders is at 8 Garden Court, in Ward 2 between Porter and Union squares.
Somerville has two indoor ice surfaces. In the mayor’s proposal, the city keeps the adjacent Veterans Memorial Rink for indoor winter sports use and neighboring communities pick up the slack for whatever rink time is lost in taking away the Founders’ ice to turn it multipurpose.
From the association’s perspective, the city let a contract lapse last year with an ice contractor. When pickleball programming was effectively ended by the cold at the end of October – despite being available through November – “the city never laid down ice,” said Brenton Stewart, association president. The space was “unavailable for ice sport usage and it was too cold to do any other sort of rec programming. So the facility has sat idle since late last fall.”
In fact, reuse of the rink arose from the city losing critical and significant space for recreation department activities because the Winter Hill school closed for safety reasons, said Denise Taylor, a city spokesperson. The rink was repurposed to test recreation uses, and freezing and unfreezing would have caused disruptions.
Either way, scheduling was complicated over the summer, Foreman said. “SYHA youth players have lost up to four hours of ice practice time during the high school hockey season which could not be rescheduled because Founders ice was unavailable. A scheduled under-age-8 hockey jamboree with other local hockey programs had to be canceled due to the closing of Founders ice,” Foreman said. “Furthermore, efforts to establish a Girls Middle School intramural program, in partnership with Somerville Rec and Somerville Public Schools, could not be piloted and implemented without access to the ice at Founders.”
Association Learn to Skate and Learn to Play programs serve around 160 participants, many under the age of 8, and the lack of space hindered expansion. “Founders Rink is perfect for our youngest members,” Foreman said. “But we were unable to utilize it this year, further cutting equal access to programming and opportunity for skill development.”
Councilors weighed in with voices of support and clarification. Lance Davis made sure to clarify that Founders is being used for nonhockey uses, such as figure skating, free skating and other community events.
Moreover, the city wants to use the space in spring, summer and fall. “Our vision is to create a vibrant recreation hub for all ages,” Parks & Recreation director Sue Yerkes said. “We want to provide consistent space for a broad range of activities, complementing the existing outdoor field and water plays areas and creating a new gathering place where people can make community connections.”
The city requests survey feedback to understand community needs around recreation. This survey is available in multiple languages.
Demands by the association, which has served youth aged 12 and under for more than four decades, include a modular flooring system that is placed atop an ice sheet; equitable access to ice-related recreation activities; and not moving all programs to Veterans Rink, which is used by older youth hockey teams, high school teams and adults.
“Putting our smallest skaters on a full-size rink can both be an economic drain – paying to rent a large facility when only half of it is being used – and an intimidating experience for the novice skaters,” Foreman said in an email after the meeting.
Foreman is optimistic about the continued conversations. “We’re hopeful that this additional review will lead to an informed decision that aligns with our long-term goals and delivers fair access to all residents,” Foreman said in the email.
This post was updated April 7, 2025, to add comments from Brenton Stewart and a city spokesperson.
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I am an adult hockey player who is an avid supporter of SYHA and former Learn-to-Skate instructor. I agree with all of Ms. Foreman’s points. From my vantage point, it sure looks as though Somerville hockey interest is rapidly increasing for all ages and genders. We adults can play pretty late into the evening, when kids can’t. Even so, there is not enough ice for adults. The kids are and shall remain everyone’s priority, but I want to note this synergy: I and adults with whom I skate, have become supporters of the youth programs in the rinks that we frequent. I would expect that a side benefit of re-opening Founders will be more supporters like us who can help make Somerville’s youth programming more equitable and accessible to all kids.