Ice hockey community demand action as fresh petition launched to build rink

A petition calling for the construction of a new ice arena in Plymouth has gained over 1,200 signatures as the local ice hockey community continues to push for a permanent home.

The campaign was launched on Change.org this week and highlights the struggles facing ice hockey players and figure skaters since the rink at the city’s Plymouth Pavilions closed permanently in January 2023.

“Plymouth is home to a large ice and roller hockey community, not only in Plymouth but spread throughout Devon and Cornwall,” said Jonathan List, the petition’s creator and a member of Plymouth Phoenix Ice Hockey Club.

“This vibrant community, filled with passionate athletes and enthusiasts, was once promised a new rink. However, those promises have yet to materialise.”

Plymouth City Council originally signed an agreement in 2012 with former chairman of Plymouth Argyle Football Club, James Brent, to sell the Pavilions site for £1 and pay his company Five Directions Ltd £2m to help with operating costs.

In return, Five Directions Ltd entered into a 10-year agreement that included an £83m redevelopment of the leisure complex, complete with a full-size ice rink. Some reports at the time suggest the sale was also dependent on Brent keeping the ice rink open until he provided a new rink for the city.

However, the rink at the Pavilions was shut shortly after the end of the decade-long agreement and parts of the complex were sold off, despite the arena project being given full planning permission.

“Our main question is, why Mr Brent was allowed to build his hotel on the Plymouth Pavillions car park, before he had completed his contract with the council regarding building the new rink,” List told FiveOnFive.

“Now he has prime land in the city centre worth millions. All for £1 and a promise which he failed to deliver.”

In 2022 the closure of the rink received criticism from local MP Luke Pollard, who told ITV News that “the owners [of Plymouth Pavilions] have had ten years to replace the ice rink, but they’ve chosen not to do that and now we need a plan so we can have an ice rink in the future.”

The petition claims Plymouth Phoenix has over 40 registered players across the region, but without a proper arena the team has had to travel two hours to Bristol to continue training and playing.

One supporter of the petition explained how “the cost of fuel and transport means that we can’t go often like myself, I rely on others or family and friends to take me, and this means I am only going once a month.”

A former ice hockey player commented that “the city would go crazy for ice hockey” and described it as “a great way to stay fit, and a very sociable activity which I feel young people especially should be able to enjoy.”

The petition argues a new rink will provide a place for recreational sports at all levels, as well as creating new jobs.

Plymouth Councillor for Sport Sue Dann told FiveOnFive she understands why a rink is wanted in Plymouth “but in my opinion, any such facility would have to be a private sector-led investment”.

That may be true after the council and Dann, who was cabinet member for customer services, sports and leisure at the time, committed to the £23 million redevelopment of the Brickfields sports complex in Davenport last year.

For List and the Plymouth ice hockey community, the message is clear but disappointing. “Private investment was always the expectation, but some help from the council would be nice,” he said.