In the northeast part of the US, rinks are often owned by a municipality. They're usually subsidized by the parks & recreation department, which means the taxpayers.
I've worked and skated at many such rinks. More and more often, they're turned into concessions or leased to a third party because of the staffing and management issues. It's become too costly for a city or county to have a facility and staff on their books as an expense when the roads need paving.
During a rink meeting, someone mentioned that they couldn't understand why the town didn't have a skating representative on the parks commission advisory council. The commission was making decisions fairly blindly, not understanding why public sessions can handle 50 people whereas a freestyle has to be capped at 25.
I wonder if skaters/parents even think to seek that role, but doesn't it make sense? Wouldn't it give us more say and influence in the community?
Of course, with private rinks, it's a whole different ball of wax...