Taos leaders, community weigh options to restore Youth & Family Center ice rink after fire

Town of Taos officials and recreation staff on Tuesday outlined a phased approach to repairing the Taos Youth & Family Center following a fall fire, saying insurance will cover building repairs but not known preexisting problems in the rink slab and systems.

The town’s assistant town manager, Mark Flores, and Recreation Director Tony Strzok told the council that the New Mexico Self Insurers Fund and an assigned adjuster have reviewed proposals from three contractors and will ask those firms for clarifying amendments before selecting a contractor, likely within one to two weeks. Flores said construction could begin in early March and — if the final contract proceeds on schedule — could take about 180 days, putting a target completion near September 2025.

The update followed weeks of work with the insurer and an engineering review of the rink slab. Strzok also summarized a temporary-system option offered by a private company (CALMAC) and recommended against committing to that system as the primary solution without more certainty.

Strzok described the CALMAC mat system as modular coil mats that would be placed over the existing floor, then tied into the facility refrigeration. He told council the coils would arrive on about 66 pallets (two semi trucks) and that each coil mat segment would weigh roughly 800 pounds. The vendor’s initial materials quote listed about $106,000 but did not include delivery, installation, modifications to the rink’s compressor walls, the larger batter-board system modifications, or long-term storage and permitting for roughly 2,000 gallons of brine/glycol. Strzok said the town would need state certification to store that much refrigeration fluid on site.

Strzok and Deputy Manager Flores described multiple cost points and operational challenges with the removable-mat approach: raised batter boards (an estimated replacement cost of roughly $330,000 for new batter boards plus glass), increased recommended ice depth (from the current 1½ inches to 3 inches, raising water use from roughly 10,500 gallons to about 30,000 gallons per sheet), seasonal installation and removal burdens on staff, and risks of introducing moisture beneath the slab. Strzok recommended against the CALMAC mat as the primary long-term fix because the vendor could not guarantee the mat would prevent renewed moisture problems beneath the slab.

Instead, Recreation staff proposed a limited, monitored test: recharge and run the refrigeration system in early February, build a temporary 1½-inch ice slab without paint or lines, and then have consultant Zeke Hurd use sonar/radar equipment to test slab condition with ice in place and again after removal. If the February test produces acceptable results, the town could consider constructing a safer temporary 2025 season; if the test shows the slab would sustain or worsen damage, staff said they will pursue alternatives, including a permanent slab replacement with modern ice matting or a vendor-supplied mat system.

Community members and youth-hockey leaders urged rapid action. Jesse Cook, a hockey parent, said he had researched alternative vendors and advocated for companies that provide vapor barriers and mat systems with site services. Mark Richard, head coach for Taos Youth Hockey Association, and Sandy Emery, association president, asked the council to keep contingency plans (plans B and C) ready so the 2025–26 season could proceed. Written letters from the Rocky Mountain District of USA Hockey and Santa Fe Hockey, submitted to the clerk, asked the council to secure ice for the 2025–26 season.

Council members pressed staff on timing and safety. Strzok said his priority is a careful, limited February test to gather definitive data; he estimated it would take about five to seven days to build the temporary slab after the compressors are fired and temperatures are lowered, and that the first consultant evaluation is scheduled for Feb. 17. He repeatedly cautioned that if roof repairs proceed in March, ice must be removed before roofing work begins.

The town clarified insurance coverage: the New Mexico Self Insurers Fund will fund repair of fire-damaged building elements (roof, interior walls, storage rooms and similar interior repairs) and return the facility “to prior condition,” Flores said. Insurance does not cover slab remediation because the slab’s issues were judged to be construction-related and preexisting; as a result, slab replacement would be a separate expense and will require separate budget planning and procurement.

Staff said there is modest budget flexibility (roughly $20,000 in recreation contingency funds) for immediate repair or system work but that larger capital choices — batter boards, slab replacement or a new facility — will require additional funding, possible midyear budget actions, or external grant and bond options. Flores said staff will obtain contractor and vendor lead-time estimates, a formal cost bid for batter boards and glass, and further price proposals for mat systems to present at future meetings.

The council did not take a formal vote on long-term options at the meeting. Staff said they would return with results of the February test and the adjusted contractor proposals before recommending a multi-year plan.