The Tupper Lake Memorial Civic Center is seen on Oct. 27, 2024. (Enterprise photo — Chris Gaige)

TUPPER LAKE — Tupper Lake Central School District Superintendent Jaycee Welsh had her fingers crossed at Monday’s regular school board meeting as she provided an update on when skating might begin this year at the Tupper Lake Memorial Civic Center, which is owned and operated by the district.

Welsh said the district plans on having the ice at the civic center ready for the season on Oct. 22. But she noted that there are a lot of moving parts to this, and a monkeywrench at any point could have effects, possibly delaying that intended start.

“As you can imagine, there are many moving parts to make the next two weeks happen,” she said. “(If) one thing doesn’t happen, all of the dates are going to shuffle. If something catastrophic happens, we will have to make a decision if we want to postpone opening or if we want to just run with the old tower.”

While there could be some changes and delays, it’s hard to imagine a bigger snafu than last year — when a broken chilling vessel discovered at the last-minute pushed the opening back to Dec. 20, 2024, as the district scrambled to find, and fund, a replacement chilling vessel.

Things are different this year, according to Welsh.

“Knock on wood, the chances of any machinery failing during our season this year are slim to none,” she said.

Originally, the plan had been to make it through this year with the current cooling tower — a separate piece of equipment in the ice rink refrigeration process from the chilling vessel. Unlike last year’s broken chilling vessel, which was inoperable, the existing cooling tower is old and not in good condition, but could have “limped” through this season if need be, according to Welsh.

Then, TLCSD learned that its replacement cooling tower had been built and was shipping ahead of schedule. The tower was scheduled to arrive today. District officials decided that the window afforded them enough time to replace the tower before making ice for the season, provided there are no “catastrophic” setbacks in the installation process and its timeline.

On Tuesday, civic center staff checked to make sure there’s no ammonia — which is commonly used in sealed lines for the cooling of indoor ice rinks, but is toxic if it is inhaled — in the refrigeration lines before they are cut as part of the tower replacement process.

Once it’s ensured there’s no ammonia, the lines will be cut as part of the preparation process for the old tower to be removed, which is slated to take place today as the new tower arrives. On Thursday, Watertown-based Legacy Crane will deliver a large crane to the civic center that will be used to lift up and uninstall the old cooling tower, according to Welsh.

On Friday and Monday, Oct. 13, the plan is to install the new cooling tower, with Welsh confirming at the board meeting that the contractors will work through the Columbus/Indigenous Peoples’ Day government holiday.

If things are still on schedule, Hogan Refrigeration will arrive at the civic center on Oct. 14 to activate the ammonia, assuming the lines are sealed off and ready for service. They will also fire up the chiller, which should be connected to the new tower and condensers at that point.

“Hopefully, everything goes wonderfully,” Welsh said. “Oct. 14 will be a big day.”

On Oct. 15, the plan is to let the floor cool, before TLCSD Building and Grounds Supervisor Sean Auclair, along with his crew, begin flooding and creating the base layer of ice on Oct. 16. If things are still on schedule, the Jet Ice — an ice paint that gives the rink surface its opaque white color — is slated to be applied on Oct. 17.

Auclair and his crew are scheduled to then work overtime into the weekend, Welsh said, painting the rink lines onto the jet ice once it’s set, then another round of flooding to apply a finish layer of ice on top so the lines are protected from skating blades. That is slated to wrap up by Oct. 21.

“Hopefully, by Wednesday, Oct. 22, skates are on the ice with a beautiful new chiller and a beautiful new chilling tower,” Welsh said.

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Hockey merger approved

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Also at Monday’s meeting, the TLCSD school board unanimously approved a sports team merger with the Clifton-Fine Central School District, which does not have an ice hockey team, to allow some students there to play on the Lumberjacks’ varsity boys ice hockey team this season, renewing the partnership for its sixth or seventh year.

“If we were in a similar situation, which we have been in before, we’re appreciative that other school districts allow us to do that as well,” Welsh said.

TLCSD Board Vice President Jason Rolley asked how many Clifton-Fine students will be on the hockey team’s roster. Welsh said it’s usually been two or three, but it’s too early to tell this season, noting that try-outs haven’t yet occurred, but the team merger agreement had to be approved before the season gets underway.