City of Santa Clarita staff Thursday presented their plans for The Rink Sports Pavilion to the Parks, Recreation and Community Services Commission, a $25 million multiuse roller skating rink the city is looking to open between April and June 2026.
The presentation by Araz Valijan, city project manager, included goals for a projected timeline, features and other facilities the city looks to add as its next “crown jewel.”
Santa Clarita Mayor Cameron Smyth said the roots of the project can be traced back to 2020, when people looked outside for more recreational activities during the pandemic.
He said he’s excited for the project’s potential, adding the city is always looking for ways to meet the recreational needs of the community, and The Rink project does that in several ways.
“But what’s unique about it, is the ability for that space to be used for multiple recreational activities, like small-side soccer, pickleball, some temporary basketball courts there as well,” he said, “so we’re excited about that. It’s more than just a roller-skating facility.”
While the cost is high, Smyth said the city considers many factors and priorities when it decides on capital improvement projects, and that building an athletic facility doesn’t preclude the city from providing other services or addressing city needs.
The 25,000-square-foot facility is being planned for a site adjacent to the gymnasium in the Santa Clarita Sports Complex, Valijan said, which is also near the city’s Aquatics Center and skate park off Centre Pointe Parkway.
“We’ll have three pickleball courts inside this venue,” she said. “So the rink itself is 12,000 square feet with three pickleball courts, a volleyball court and a full-size basketball court inside the rink, and then folks can obviously roller skate. The material will be wood so they can easily skate throughout.”
Using lessons in efficiency the city has garnered from The Cube, the interior will have some amenities that might be conceptually similar, like the concession and rental areas, she added.
The exterior design will have similar construction look and materials as the Canyon Country Community Center and the Santa Clarita Valley Sheriff’s Station.
One thing The Rink won’t offer, officials said, is roller hockey or roller derby.
“We know that’s kind of, ‘Hey, is that something we’re going to do?’” said Lance O’Keefe, recreation and community services manager for the city, referring to local interest in hockey. “When we looked at how to best maximize the use, roller hockey, because of the demands on the floor, the building, it really limits what we can do.”
He said staff who work in recreation are already referring to the space as a championship venue for city athletic competitions like intramural basketball.
Valijan offered a virtual guided tour with her presentation, walking the public past the rentals area to the locker area, and one could see another example of how the project has grown from a roller rink.
The plans include cement bleachers, with storage underneath, where up to 200 people could watch an event on the main court area. These lead to the men’s and women’s restrooms, which also feature a single-stall family bathroom near the entrance.
One of the highlights for the project is a DJ-audio-visual booth, which is 2 feet off the ground, so the person in the booth can see the whole floor and direct the action from above when desired.
The facility also has a party area for special events that can fit about 50 people. Another space offered an area for visitors to enjoy food and drinks from the kitchen.
“One thing that we have added more recently is our fully stocked concession-kitchen,” she said. “It’s very similar to what we have at The Cube as far as square footage,” she said, adding, “the world is our oyster with what we would like to have served in this kitchen area.”
The next step for the project is a groundbreaking for the construction grading, Valijan said, which is scheduled for 9:30 a.m. Aug. 29 at the project site.
