Bowie Ice Arena conrete floor is uneven.

[Query]

I normally only visit this rink (Bowie, MD, USA) - my favorite rink, that I moved to be near - while they are open. They are closed for the season now, but a non-skating event occurred there today.

The concrete floor has bumps and depressions - presumably a symptom of Frost Heaves and erosion. The manager says it is one of the reasons they know that the rink - originally built in 1971 - might not last much longer. 

Which means that if Bowie city council doesn't fund the replacement rink, Bowie may, in a few years time, have no ice rink. Which would be roughly equivalent to the end of the world.

[AlbaNY]

Shoot, I typed up a long thing, and the internet ate it.  (I have atrocious signal where I am.)

For now I’ll say that sucks, but hopefully they’ll invest in keeping it going.  (I had a bunch to say about it coming from what I know as a rink employee and as a skater, but I better go to sleep soon.)

[Query]

 

[AlbaNY]

Okay, I am finally back and still wish my last try at this response wasn’t eaten by the internet gods…

How bad are the depressions?  It costs more to keep thick ice, so if they have to maintain a mostly thicker sheet to cope with the higher spots that isn’t good.  However, the concrete probably is one of the least costly parts of the rink to renovate.  I’m more worried they also have to replace the chiller, resurfacer, and other systems by now too.  This can happen.   A formerly “local” rink just did a massive renovation of all their systems, boards, and all this past year.  “My” rink is also in the midst of a renovation too.  The first is a tiny and seasonal town rink, empty for public until the free school kid thing they generously provide, but somehow they got the funding.  They even hosted a major women’s world hockey tournament this spring.  “Mine” is a county rink funded by the youth hockey program.  Those parents and coaches do so much to keep everything going.

Essentially it is vital to get a grassroots thing going for the support and funding.  Try to work with the hockey kid contingent, write to the papers, and get on Facebook about it.  Even my tiny (under 2,000 people) and very impoverished hometown has made funding and volunteering available for a winter outdoor rink recently thanks to grassroots involvement.
If the concrete base is the biggest problem I wouldn’t worry too much.  If they think pretty much everything needs to be upgraded then get to work on social media and such to save the rink.  It can be done.  I’m not kidding about the small town run place getting a total revamp all while charging 5 dollars for public and offering hours of free ice to the kids from the school next to it.  They replaced everything except the resurfacer (and might have, but I can’t say for sure.) 
My understanding is that Bowie is a larger population area by far, so getting local groups to rally for it could make a big difference.

Back to the issues…
I’m worried the structure itself could be problematic and more so the systems required of a rink, but that isn’t insurmountable.  The concrete is not much of a factor at all compared to what else is probably going on.  Showers, locker rooms, chiller, other systems, resurfacer,… those add up.  The floor is only an easy example. 

[Query]

The bumps are maybe 1/4" - 1/2" high - maybe somewhat more in places. I didn't measure them.

I think they told me they lay down about 1" of ice. So maybe it is significant, as you say. There are rinks with bigger bumps

The concrete has rebar and refrigeration pipes embedded in it. More recent all-year rinks have heating elements embedded in the bottom. And I think (I'm not an engineer) the presence of these bumps suggests that there are now internal fractures throughout the body of the concrete, and perhaps the rebar. Much of the soil underneath it must have eroded away, so it must eventually be unsafe. This structure over it is wood (beautiful, with high arched ceilings). But presumably it has some rot.

So you can't just sand off the top, and add a thin layer of extra concrete - you have to remove and redo everything, which costs more than starting over somewhere else. Maybe that's typical for old ice rinks?

Modern SafeSport standards call for separate male and female dressing rooms - which it has, but also different dressing rooms for different age groups, which it doesn't. USFSA, ISI and USA Hockey allow some leeway, but they might not in the future. The rink is a little smaller than NHL standard. USA Hockey, USFSA, and ISI allows that too, but it discourages some rentals. And tournaments and competitions prefer multi-surface facilities, and/or have better public transportation access.

The city that sponsors it is geographically large & spread out - much of it far from the rink. The area is developing, and has other recreation centers. It's no longer just about the only thing for local teenagers to do on a Friday night, as it was when it was built. And the city doesn't give them a large advertising budget. And the mayor doesn't love the rink.

It has a well deserved reputation for lightly attended sessions, well maintained ice and public facilities, and a fairly decent (but not leading) pro shop. There is nearby shopping and a nearby hotel. But the local user base isn't large or wealthy enough to raise the money on its own, or dominate the city council.