NPIce continues fundraising as opening day approaches

NORTH PLATTE, Neb. (KNOP) -The NPIce project continues their fundraising as the target opening date of December 12th approaches.

Tuesday, the city council approved the lease for the rink to use land at Centennial Park from December to March, which clears a path for the rink to start on time as scheduled. The rink will be located at the site of the old tennis courts at the park in front of the little league baseball fields.

The project is hosting a Blizzard Ball on Saturday, November 5th, at the Prairie Arts Center. The event will include dinner, dancing, prizes, and more, and tickets are available in advance on the NPIce website, or at the door as long as they are available. Tickets for the Ball cost $75 per person, or $125 per couple.

BLu McGrath who works with the project told News 2 that everything need for the rink has been ordered, and that they are just needing to continue fundraising to make payments on the supplies ordered. The bill includes things like dasher boards, the ice refrigeration system, and rental skates, all necessary for getting the rink running for the people of North Platte.

“The fundraising is still paying for the equipment that we have ordered,” said McGrath, “we had to order it in order for it to get here, but we have to pay for it before they will ship it. So, we’ve got quite a chunk of change coming up that we need to get funds for.”

The rink will run 90 feet long by 75 feet wide, but McGrath says that there is plans for an expanded rink in the future that would be the full 200 feet in length that a normal ice hockey rink measures.

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