For better use and better management. The UNOFFICIAL Website of Toronto's Outdoor Skating Rinks


See also Site Map


 
 

Citizen-Z Cavan Young's 2004 film about the zamboni crisis

Contact Us!

[email protected]

Policies

Website and Privacy Policies

Google Analytics
Search


City Rinks Toronto

Promote Your Page Too

Free Publication


A Manual for Running Compressor-Cooled Outdoor Rinks Really Well. Read more>>

City of Toronto website

wood stove at Dufferin

Custodians:

< Royalcrest Rink | Go to List of Rinks | Summerlea Rink >

You are in the Sir Adam Beck Rink folder

Welcome to The Unofficial Website of Toronto's Outdoor Skating Rinks

There's nothing like outdoor skating

A project of CELOS (*)

Sir Adam Beck Rink Profile

Built: unknown
Compressors 100 hp plus 20 hp glycol pump
Age of condensor, compressor unknown. Replacement currently scheduled for 2022-23. Heat exchanger 1997, headers 2007

Opening Nov.26, 2022
Closing: TBA

Rink change area: big and clean, rubber flooring throughout, logos everywhere

Staff: Usually only the zamboni driver, sometimes two rink guards

Maintenance: There is a tractor with an ice-cleaning attachment on site. There is also a snow cleaning tractor. A rink operator is on site Monday-Friday 3-11pm and all day Saturday and Sunday. 9 shifts a week.


Comments about this rink: e-mail us at [email protected].


lots of hockey permits

outdoor change area

Rink Diary

2021 - 2022

Nov.27, 2021

Opened for the season

Dec.3, 2021

Marked as closed for "ice conditions." Temp is 0 celsius, heavy cloud

Dec.4, 2021

Marked as closed again, this time for "mechanical problems"

 

2020 - 2021

COVID-RELATED RESTRICTIONS: To find out how to book a skating time, go to the city's outdoor rinks web page.
All shinny hockey has been removed except for Greenwood (and only children and youth are allowed there). The city's opening rules are described here and our rinks blog is here.

Nov.28,2020

Opening day

 

Earlier rink diaries

2019 - 2020

No reports

2018 - 2019

Jan.29, 2019

The rink has been marked as open until yesterday and then it was listed as "snow removal in progress" (with over 25 cm of snow). At 1 p.m. it was again listed as open.

Nov.25, 2018

This rink opened yesterday and was open this morning, but at 4 pm it was listed as closed.


2017 - 2018

Feb.13, 2018, from Geri Dempsey

4pm: School already out but an almost-empty rink, aside from a senior playing shinny by himself (86 he told me!). He's been using the rink for 30 years and was very happy with the new rink house; "let's hope the kids don't ruin it" he kept saying. A dad and his young daughter came to skate and play shinny by the time I left. The ice looked great, the new rink house was clean (if empty) and at least has windows out to the ice. The staff room is at the back and looks out to the change area with a small window.

Jan.13, 2018:

Morning, 11 a.m.: Tory on twitter

Evening, 6.30 p.m.:


logos all along the new boards, even on the ice: branding opportunity

one skater at 6.30 p.m.

one person in the rink house

nice rubber flooring, lots of Maple Leafs blue paint

blue painted benches, lots of logos everywhere
 

From the MLSE media release:

Located beside Sir Adam Beck Junior School and Alderwood Centre, the refurbishment project include complete replacement of the rink boards and safety glass, as well as improvements to the rink’s fieldhouse. The rink will provide local youth with a safe place to skate, play hockey and will act as an outdoor hub for the community. The improved rink will also be home to an all-girls program site for MLSE Foundation’s Hockey in the Neighbourhood program.

The last big reno was in 2009(see diary entry below). This one was done in 2017 -- so every 8 years?

 
Jan.12, 2018, public notice from Councillor Grimes:

Sir Adam Beck Rink Grand Re-opening Celebration

Last year, the Sir Adam Beck rink was renovated thanks to a partnership between City Parks and the Maple Leaf Sports and Entertainment (MLSE) Foundation. This community rink is well used and loved by many, and I was extremely pleased to see this important facility receive some much-needed upgrades.

In honour of this, the City will be hosting a grand re-opening tomorrow, beginning at 11 a.m. I will be in attendance, alongside the Mayor, Parks staff and other special guests. Hope to see you there!

Nov.24, 2017

This rink gives the impression of a lot of last-minute work being done. A worker is going in and out of the change room and a carpenter is bolting down the players boxes. The boards look new but they don't even have any logos on them yet -- very unusual especially for MLSE.


ice is in, sign is stil up

carpenter still assembling the players' boxes
 
October 2017: announcement on city councillor Grimes' website (but not mentioned on the city of Toronto rink site):

In partnership with Maple Leafs Sports and Entertainment (MLSE), City of Toronto Parks, Forestry & Recreation staff are currently working on improvements to the Sir Adam Beck ice rink.

The rink will receive a new dasher board system, with glass at the ends of the rink, a new water bottle filling station inside the existing dressing room and a fresh coat of paint in the dressing room and washroom facilities.

The fence at the west end of the rink is being extended in height to address safety concerns of pucks of landing in the nearby school grounds.

This project is scheduled to be completed in advance of the upcoming ice season.


 

2016 - 2017

This rink opened on time on Nov.26 2016.

 

Rink diaries from earlier years:

2015 - 2016

March 10, 2016

Although it was scheduled to stay open until March 20, this rink was closed for the season today.

Feb.1, 2016

8 p.m.: Temp. 3 degrees, rink listed as closed.

Dec.29, 2015

All the city's outdoor rinks were closed today until later afternoon, because of the heavy, extremely wet snow. But Adam Beck opened in the first group of three. Good ice-making by the grouchy zamboni driver from a month ago? Who knows?

Nov.28, 2015

door locked

The rink was scheduled to be open, but there was only thin ice. A sign was posted on the door, saying the ice is "too soft so the rink is closed," and the doors were locked. Some knocking brought the zamboni driver to the door. He said, "can't you see how warm it is outside? Of course the rinks can't be open." I told him that quite a few rinks were open and the ice was fine. He said, "they have much better cooling." I said, "no, some of the ones that are open have the same amount of cooling as your rink. When did this rink start making ice?"

He rolled his eyes and said, "I'm busy, I can't take any more time to talk."

And slammed the door.


hoses still out -- when did they start ice-making?

thin sheet of ice on would-be opening day
 

2014 - 2015

March 19, 2015

Sir Adam Beck, March 19, 1 celsius, only one skater all day

The rink was open, but although there were two staff on site, they had only one skater by 2 pm, and the rink didn't look like it would recover, since the sun was strong. Temperature: 1 celsius.

 
March 17, 2015

Rink marked "closed" for today, by 3 pm.

Jan 1 2015 (New Year's Day)

At 10.50 there were 7 shinny players -- two little kids with helmets, the adults without. The rink was open and the building was open -- no rink staff present.


good ice, recently cleaned

rink change room open, no staff but no problem
 
Dec.2 2014

The rink opened on Nov.29, closed on Nov.30, reopened on Dec.2.


2011 - 2012

Saturday Dec.3 2011

No signs to say they're open, but there was a member of staff inside the change room who said they are open. The ice is pretty good, but uneven and rough in some areas. There were 4/5 kids playing shinny.


not many skaters, and no "opening day" sign

ice a bit rough in places

 

2010 - 2011

Monday November 15 2010

There's a little vehicle on the rink scrubbing the surface. The rink looks clean and ready to go. But no ice will be made for another week.


scrubbing the rink surface

deep cleaned -- but no ice-making allowed

 

2009 - 2010

Monday November 16th, 2009

This rink is scheduled to open on the 21st of November. At around noon, there were friendly maintenance staff working on the building from the inside. The walls in the change room were freshly painted, with big blue male and female for the bathrooms. The staff pointed out that a new door and window were installed, adding more light to the single brick room and improving visibility. The existing doors and window were re-framed. The rink itself was partially cleared of leaves and there was a little water on the pad. The compressors did not appear to be on yet. There was a City of Toronto poster up saying that the rink was scheduled to open on the 21st of November, weather permitting and to call 311 for more information.

Friday, November 20th, 2009

Overcast. The rink has ice. Lots of water remains on the surface though. The rink house is still under construction. The sinks and urinals are still not installed. The plumber in the building said he was hoping to finish his end of thing today. Only 2 of the big rink lights were raised by 10am this morning. Its unclear, unlikely... that the rink or building will be ready for opening day tomorrow.

Tuesday November 24 2009

light standards were erected on Saturday

All the light standards are up and apparently the electrician is in the building, hooking everything up. The sinks are mostly in, just one urinal left to go. New flooring is being laid. The two doors of the garage are being enlarged to accommodate bigger vehicles.

The compressors are not on, and the rink has no ice and no ice-making staff.


garage doors being widened

no ice
 
Wednesday Dec.2 2009 1.40 pm

This rink was supposed to open on Nov.21, but even today, it's still closed. The first thing to meet the eye in the rink parking lot is a big asphalt truck. A company is repaving the path around the outside of the building.


first to meet the eye

new paving, 10 days after "opening day"

Meanwhile, the ice looks terrific, despite a sunny day of 12 degrees celsius (although the sun is at its lowest at this time of the year, without much melting power). The mats are laid out, the benches in place, but the rink is locked, and there are no staff to say when it will be opened to skaters.


beautiful ice

all ready for skaters, but locked
 
Monday December 28, 2009

At 2.45 there were 4 pleasure-skaters on the ice, plus 1 rink guard. There were 12 skaters inside, some about to leave and a few just arriving, and 2 more rink guards, who were comfortably settled on a bench by the window and deep in conversation. I asked them for a holiday schedule and they were quick to go look for one, but there were none to take home. There were yellow signs of revised holiday hours posted prominently, saying that the rink would be open but unsupervised on New Year's Day.

I asked the rink guards, "why are there so few skaters? Is it always like this?" They said that sometimes it's busier, "but not on the holidays, because a lot of people are away."

Comparison to nearby Wedgwood Rink, an unsupervised compressor-cooled tennis pad: at the same time, there were 37 skaters on or around the ice, with more people arriving. And Valleyfield Rink, the same kind of unsupervised rink, had 31 skaters, with more coming down the rink steps.

Tuesday January 19, 2010

At 5.20, there were 10 shinny hockey players on the ice, all wearing helmets. One skater was sitting in the change room, talking to the zamboni driver. I asked about attendance and he said there are regulars who come for the public shinny. He said that the tennis pad rinks without boards have many more shinny players because they don't have to wear helmets, and he finds it tough to be always harrassing the skaters at this rink, to put on their helmets.

 

See Diaries tab

Views of the rink


Posted rink schedule
Click on picture to enlarge it.
 

From The City of Toronto Website 2014-15

For the skating schedule, go to Sir Adam Beck, then click on Skating.

Rink Diary

2021 - 2022

Nov.27, 2021

Opened for the season

Dec.3, 2021

Marked as closed for "ice conditions." Temp is 0 celsius, heavy cloud

Dec.4, 2021

Marked as closed again, this time for "mechanical problems"

 

2020 - 2021

COVID-RELATED RESTRICTIONS: To find out how to book a skating time, go to the city's outdoor rinks web page.
All shinny hockey has been removed except for Greenwood (and only children and youth are allowed there). The city's opening rules are described here and our rinks blog is here.

Nov.28,2020

Opening day

 

Earlier rink diaries

2019 - 2020

No reports

2018 - 2019

Jan.29, 2019

The rink has been marked as open until yesterday and then it was listed as "snow removal in progress" (with over 25 cm of snow). At 1 p.m. it was again listed as open.

Nov.25, 2018

This rink opened yesterday and was open this morning, but at 4 pm it was listed as closed.


2017 - 2018

Feb.13, 2018, from Geri Dempsey

4pm: School already out but an almost-empty rink, aside from a senior playing shinny by himself (86 he told me!). He's been using the rink for 30 years and was very happy with the new rink house; "let's hope the kids don't ruin it" he kept saying. A dad and his young daughter came to skate and play shinny by the time I left. The ice looked great, the new rink house was clean (if empty) and at least has windows out to the ice. The staff room is at the back and looks out to the change area with a small window.

Jan.13, 2018:

Morning, 11 a.m.: Tory on twitter

Evening, 6.30 p.m.:


logos all along the new boards, even on the ice: branding opportunity

one skater at 6.30 p.m.

one person in the rink house

nice rubber flooring, lots of Maple Leafs blue paint

blue painted benches, lots of logos everywhere
 

From the MLSE media release:

Located beside Sir Adam Beck Junior School and Alderwood Centre, the refurbishment project include complete replacement of the rink boards and safety glass, as well as improvements to the rink’s fieldhouse. The rink will provide local youth with a safe place to skate, play hockey and will act as an outdoor hub for the community. The improved rink will also be home to an all-girls program site for MLSE Foundation’s Hockey in the Neighbourhood program.

The last big reno was in 2009(see diary entry below). This one was done in 2017 -- so every 8 years?

 
Jan.12, 2018, public notice from Councillor Grimes:

Sir Adam Beck Rink Grand Re-opening Celebration

Last year, the Sir Adam Beck rink was renovated thanks to a partnership between City Parks and the Maple Leaf Sports and Entertainment (MLSE) Foundation. This community rink is well used and loved by many, and I was extremely pleased to see this important facility receive some much-needed upgrades.

In honour of this, the City will be hosting a grand re-opening tomorrow, beginning at 11 a.m. I will be in attendance, alongside the Mayor, Parks staff and other special guests. Hope to see you there!

Nov.24, 2017

This rink gives the impression of a lot of last-minute work being done. A worker is going in and out of the change room and a carpenter is bolting down the players boxes. The boards look new but they don't even have any logos on them yet -- very unusual especially for MLSE.


ice is in, sign is stil up

carpenter still assembling the players' boxes
 
October 2017: announcement on city councillor Grimes' website (but not mentioned on the city of Toronto rink site):

In partnership with Maple Leafs Sports and Entertainment (MLSE), City of Toronto Parks, Forestry & Recreation staff are currently working on improvements to the Sir Adam Beck ice rink.

The rink will receive a new dasher board system, with glass at the ends of the rink, a new water bottle filling station inside the existing dressing room and a fresh coat of paint in the dressing room and washroom facilities.

The fence at the west end of the rink is being extended in height to address safety concerns of pucks of landing in the nearby school grounds.

This project is scheduled to be completed in advance of the upcoming ice season.


 

2016 - 2017

This rink opened on time on Nov.26 2016.

 

Rink diaries from earlier years:

2015 - 2016

March 10, 2016

Although it was scheduled to stay open until March 20, this rink was closed for the season today.

Feb.1, 2016

8 p.m.: Temp. 3 degrees, rink listed as closed.

Dec.29, 2015

All the city's outdoor rinks were closed today until later afternoon, because of the heavy, extremely wet snow. But Adam Beck opened in the first group of three. Good ice-making by the grouchy zamboni driver from a month ago? Who knows?

Nov.28, 2015

door locked

The rink was scheduled to be open, but there was only thin ice. A sign was posted on the door, saying the ice is "too soft so the rink is closed," and the doors were locked. Some knocking brought the zamboni driver to the door. He said, "can't you see how warm it is outside? Of course the rinks can't be open." I told him that quite a few rinks were open and the ice was fine. He said, "they have much better cooling." I said, "no, some of the ones that are open have the same amount of cooling as your rink. When did this rink start making ice?"

He rolled his eyes and said, "I'm busy, I can't take any more time to talk."

And slammed the door.


hoses still out -- when did they start ice-making?

thin sheet of ice on would-be opening day
 

2014 - 2015

March 19, 2015

Sir Adam Beck, March 19, 1 celsius, only one skater all day

The rink was open, but although there were two staff on site, they had only one skater by 2 pm, and the rink didn't look like it would recover, since the sun was strong. Temperature: 1 celsius.

 
March 17, 2015

Rink marked "closed" for today, by 3 pm.

Jan 1 2015 (New Year's Day)

At 10.50 there were 7 shinny players -- two little kids with helmets, the adults without. The rink was open and the building was open -- no rink staff present.


good ice, recently cleaned

rink change room open, no staff but no problem
 
Dec.2 2014

The rink opened on Nov.29, closed on Nov.30, reopened on Dec.2.


2011 - 2012

Saturday Dec.3 2011

No signs to say they're open, but there was a member of staff inside the change room who said they are open. The ice is pretty good, but uneven and rough in some areas. There were 4/5 kids playing shinny.


not many skaters, and no "opening day" sign

ice a bit rough in places

 

2010 - 2011

Monday November 15 2010

There's a little vehicle on the rink scrubbing the surface. The rink looks clean and ready to go. But no ice will be made for another week.


scrubbing the rink surface

deep cleaned -- but no ice-making allowed

 

2009 - 2010

Monday November 16th, 2009

This rink is scheduled to open on the 21st of November. At around noon, there were friendly maintenance staff working on the building from the inside. The walls in the change room were freshly painted, with big blue male and female for the bathrooms. The staff pointed out that a new door and window were installed, adding more light to the single brick room and improving visibility. The existing doors and window were re-framed. The rink itself was partially cleared of leaves and there was a little water on the pad. The compressors did not appear to be on yet. There was a City of Toronto poster up saying that the rink was scheduled to open on the 21st of November, weather permitting and to call 311 for more information.

Friday, November 20th, 2009

Overcast. The rink has ice. Lots of water remains on the surface though. The rink house is still under construction. The sinks and urinals are still not installed. The plumber in the building said he was hoping to finish his end of thing today. Only 2 of the big rink lights were raised by 10am this morning. Its unclear, unlikely... that the rink or building will be ready for opening day tomorrow.

Tuesday November 24 2009

light standards were erected on Saturday

All the light standards are up and apparently the electrician is in the building, hooking everything up. The sinks are mostly in, just one urinal left to go. New flooring is being laid. The two doors of the garage are being enlarged to accommodate bigger vehicles.

The compressors are not on, and the rink has no ice and no ice-making staff.


garage doors being widened

no ice
 
Wednesday Dec.2 2009 1.40 pm

This rink was supposed to open on Nov.21, but even today, it's still closed. The first thing to meet the eye in the rink parking lot is a big asphalt truck. A company is repaving the path around the outside of the building.


first to meet the eye

new paving, 10 days after "opening day"

Meanwhile, the ice looks terrific, despite a sunny day of 12 degrees celsius (although the sun is at its lowest at this time of the year, without much melting power). The mats are laid out, the benches in place, but the rink is locked, and there are no staff to say when it will be opened to skaters.


beautiful ice

all ready for skaters, but locked
 
Monday December 28, 2009

At 2.45 there were 4 pleasure-skaters on the ice, plus 1 rink guard. There were 12 skaters inside, some about to leave and a few just arriving, and 2 more rink guards, who were comfortably settled on a bench by the window and deep in conversation. I asked them for a holiday schedule and they were quick to go look for one, but there were none to take home. There were yellow signs of revised holiday hours posted prominently, saying that the rink would be open but unsupervised on New Year's Day.

I asked the rink guards, "why are there so few skaters? Is it always like this?" They said that sometimes it's busier, "but not on the holidays, because a lot of people are away."

Comparison to nearby Wedgwood Rink, an unsupervised compressor-cooled tennis pad: at the same time, there were 37 skaters on or around the ice, with more people arriving. And Valleyfield Rink, the same kind of unsupervised rink, had 31 skaters, with more coming down the rink steps.

Tuesday January 19, 2010

At 5.20, there were 10 shinny hockey players on the ice, all wearing helmets. One skater was sitting in the change room, talking to the zamboni driver. I asked about attendance and he said there are regulars who come for the public shinny. He said that the tennis pad rinks without boards have many more shinny players because they don't have to wear helmets, and he finds it tough to be always harrassing the skaters at this rink, to put on their helmets.

 
 

Diary 2008-2009, Diary 2007 -2008


To see the (2007-2008) report card, click here

hosted by WordAndData.com | powered by pmwiki-2.2.80
Content last modified on November 26, 2022, at 06:28 PM EST