Frequently Asked Questions

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Yes!!! The City of Ponderay and North Idaho Ice are so pleased to announce that a holiday ice rink WILL be open from Thanksgiving break through mid-January in Ponderay.  The rink will be located on City property at the corner of Moonflower and Kootenai Cutoff Road near Highway 200. 

The City of Ponderay and North Idaho Ice have always been of the opinion that we should start small with the ice facility, prove the interest and need and then grow it one step at a time. This rink is simply the first step in this progression. 

The Ponderay Community Rink

• The Ponderay Community Ice Rink will open in November 2024 is not being funded by the local option sales tax. However, it will likely end up at the Field of Dreams in the future and will continue to operate as an ancillary rink for outdoor community and holiday skating even once the indoor ice facility is constructed. 
• This very affordable rink is a +/- 138’x80’ uncovered outdoor rink and comes with a Zamboni, chiller, mats, boards and 300 pair of rental skates. This rink will cost approximately $200,000 to get it up and running for the 2024 season. 
• The Ponderay Community rink will operate during the holiday season for community skating and some organized events in the off hours. • This low-cost option gets us operational now! Additionally, it lets us test the water, build interest and demonstrate community need before the Field of Dreams facility is constructed, which is substantially more expensive. 

Field of Dreams Ice Arena 

• The Ponderay Field of Dreams conceptual design includes an enclosed ice arena that will be constructed in phases.
• The proposed community rink does not replace this facility .
• The City Council has indicated that the next Field of Dreams phase is slated to continue construction  from the south end of the facility to the north. This would likely include phase one of the future ice  arena. 
• Future phases of the Field of Dreams development hinge on continued passage of the Ponderay Local Option sales tax for funding, which goes back to the voters in November of 2024.
• The City has purchased a full set of boards for a NHL sized ice arena which will be used in the future indoor rink at the Field of Dreams. They are being stored and still intend to be used for that purpose.  

The short answer is…WE NEED YOUR HELP! 

• North Idaho Ice has negotiated the purchase of the Ponderay Community Ice Rink on a payment plan. 
• The City of Ponderay has funded the first $25,000 as a down payment which guarantee’s deliver and  ensures the rink will be set up and operational in November 2024. 
• The remaining balance of the funds must be raised through a combination of Grants, Sponsorships,  Donations and operational income by May of 2025 (via a series of scheduled payments)

• The City of Ponderay and North Idaho Ice are organizing a series of fundraising events now through May  of 2025. Watch the North Idaho Ice and City of Ponderay websites and follow us on Facebook and  Instagram to stay up to date on fundraising events and to track our fundraising progress.
• Monetary Donations can be dropped off at Ponderay City Hall or Mountain Metals made payable to North Idaho Ice or on GoFundMe at https://www.gofundme.com/f/ponderay-community-ice-rink.  North Idaho Ice is an approved 501c3 non-profit, EIN 87-2902087. 
• Rink Sponsorship opportunities are available now! 
• Tickets and Sponsor Tables are available now for our June 1st fundraiser at Ponderay Event Center.  Contact KayLeigh at Ponderay City Hall or Mountain Metals for additional information.
• Silent and live auction donations are needed for our fundraising events. If you are able to help with this,  please contact KayLeigh at Ponderay City Hall ((208) 265-5468) or Mountain Metals ((208)263-6031) for  additional information. 

What a great problem to have!!!

Not to worry! Any funds raised in excess of those needed to get the community rink up and going will be applied to improvements for the Outdoor Rink and/or the future indoor ice arena at the Ponderay Field of  Dreams. 

The City of Ponderay, North Idaho Ice and North Wilderness have entered into an ongoing  memorandum of agreement which requires that all funds raised by the non-profits go to the City of  Ponderay for the purpose of bringing ice to the Ponderay Community. In turn the City guarantees that all  funds contributed by the non-profits will be spent for the purpose of an ice facility in Ponderay. It’s a  WIN WIN! 

NIICE and the City of Ponderay have been working together to make this happen. We are seperate entities. NIICE has worked largley as consultants on this project. We have been doing the research and gathering dollars. As far as I know, here have been no bids put forth by the COP in relation to this project.  All the work thus far has been voluteered/donated or paid for through NIICE.  

This is a facility that is meant for the residents as a new alternative activity. The more utilization the better. Ice rinks run in the black. They turn a profit. As such, we intend to keep costs low. We have been working with the City of Ponderay for initial funding and have established an excellent relationship to hopefully get this accomplished. We also intend to seek donations and grants to help not only with intial costs, but also with op[erational needs. This is a non-profit business. Once Phase/Stage 3 is established and secure, we inted to return a percentage to the City of Ponderay to further develop community recreational needs. 

The current LOT is set to expire in November of 2024. At that point there is going to be another LOT on the ballot. The  current LOT and future LOT is specifically for the use of Ponderay in providing recreation. The two major recipients of the LOT funds are the Field of Dreams and the Harbison underpass for lake access to Ponderay residents.   

This has been a huge undertaking; I’ve learned a lot. The renderings are just that. They are often an artist’s depiction of what they would like to see. They are not generally what a finished product will look like. Changes in needs and desires occur. A good example is initial FOD renderings had areas for racket sports (tennis/pickleball). Those are not needed now that Sandpoint has a large facility going in. The final product is a process that is moldable and bendable depending on external forces. It’s not that there is a bait and switch occurring, it’s changing needs and desires of the community.  

 The tax revenue budgeted for future use. It can’t be spent until it has been collected, The City is not able start the bid process until there are funds available to pay for an accepted bid. There are workarounds such as taking loans out against projected revenues, but these cost too. Long story short, pay cash. Don’t pay interest on a loan.  

North Idaho Ice is committed to this project. We are also committed to full transparency. Nobody from NIICE was contacted for the writing of the article in the Bee. Nobody has contacted us in response to the article in the Bee. Our board is comprised of busy Dads and business owners.  Each of us makes time volunteering to make an ice rink at the Field of Dreams a reality. We do watch email and Facebook and will respond to questions as as soon life lets us. Please feel free to reach out for addition questions, comments, or concerns.