RINKS
Outdoor Rinks
The Park District of Oak Park has two outdoor ice rinks residents can enjoy:
“Why are some rinks open while others are closed?” Our Parks & Planning team works hard to prepare our outdoor ice rinks for skating every winter season. Here’s a sneak peek into how we get our rinks ready for you:
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- We fill the rink liners with a large layer of water – think of it like a giant pool! We need a good stretch of cold weather (below-20-degree days) to freeze the water.
- Once all of the layers are frozen, we can open the rinks.
- The weather needs to stay below freezing (32 degrees) to keep the rink from melting and creating cracks, thus making it unsafe to skate.
- We track weather conditions daily and their effects on the ice conditions.Â
Those are just a few of the things we do to keep our outdoor rinks safe for the community! Now the big question: when will they be ready? Check out their status below.
