Altrincham Ice Dome
Encyclopedia
Altrincham
Altrincham is a market town within the Metropolitan Borough of Trafford, in Greater Manchester, England. It lies on flat ground south of the River Mersey about southwest of Manchester city centre, south-southwest of Sale and east of Warrington...
, Greater Manchester
Greater Manchester
Greater Manchester is a metropolitan county in North West England, with a population of 2.6 million. It encompasses one of the largest metropolitan areas in the United Kingdom and comprises ten metropolitan boroughs: Bolton, Bury, Oldham, Rochdale, Stockport, Tameside, Trafford, Wigan, and the...
, England. It has 2,000 seats according to the rink website, and up to 500 standing places. despite this, the building has a capacity capped at 2,000 for ice hockey as standing around the plexi glass is not allowed in the rink during the games. The Ice Dome hosts the home matches of the Manchester Phoenix
Manchester Phoenix
Manchester Phoenix are a professional ice hockey team from Altrincham, Greater Manchester, England. The club was formed in 2003 as a result of the efforts of supporters group Friends of Manchester Ice Hockey to bring top-level ice hockey back to Manchester after Manchester Storm folded in...
and Trafford Metros ice hockey
Ice hockey
Ice hockey, often referred to as hockey, is a team sport played on ice, in which skaters use wooden or composite sticks to shoot a hard rubber puck into their opponent's net. The game is played between two teams of six players each. Five members of each team skate up and down the ice trying to take...
clubs, as well as junior ice hockey, public skating sessions, birthday parties, private events, and skating lessons.
The rink replaced the original Altrincham Ice Rink
Altrincham Ice Rink
The original Altrincham Ice Rink was situated on Devonshire Road. Opened in 1960, the rink was home to the Altrincham Aces and original Trafford Metros Ice Hockey teams, as well as figure and speed skaters....
, which had closed in 2003. The Dome itself will eventually be replaced by a more permanent 3,000 seat facility as part of the Altair development
Construction
The Ice Dome is a prefabricated structure constructed in FinlandFinland
Finland , officially the Republic of Finland, is a Nordic country situated in the Fennoscandian region of Northern Europe. It is bordered by Sweden in the west, Norway in the north and Russia in the east, while Estonia lies to its south across the Gulf of Finland.Around 5.4 million people reside...
. The building uses a wood and steel frame, with the lower half of the walls being made of brickwork, whilst the upper half and roof are clad in aluminum sheeting. The base of the ice pad is compacted sand which contains the pipework for the ice plant.
Assembly began in August 2006, and cost around £2.5m. The rink was due to open on 24 September 2006, when Manchester Phoenix were scheduled to host the Sheffield Steelers
Sheffield Steelers
The Sheffield Steelers are a British ice hockey club, from Sheffield, England. They were formed in 1991 and play their home games at the Sheffield Arena. They are currently members of the Elite Ice Hockey League...
in their opening home game. But due to several delays,, the opening was put back to 17 February 2007 match against the Edinburgh Capitals
Edinburgh Capitals
The Edinburgh Capitals are a Scottish ice hockey club, playing in the UK-wide Elite Ice Hockey League.They are based in the Scottish capital, Edinburgh...
, with a reduced capacity of 1,200. However, due to the ice surface not being ready in time, the first game actually took place on 25 February 2007, against Basingstoke Bison
Basingstoke Bison
The Basingstoke Bison are an English Ice Hockey club from Basingstoke. They currently compete in the English Premier Ice Hockey League and have previously been members of the Ice Hockey Superleague and its successor the Elite Ice Hockey League- History :...
. The number of people allowed into the building was just 1,000. The seating was finally finished in October 2007.
A series of plasma screen monitors were installed during the first half of the 2007–2008 season, to help the Phoenix improve the experience of the game night as well as countering the limited sightlines. Parts of the ice surface were obscured by walkways and access steps. The introduction of the screens has helped alleviate this as a live feed from the in house cameras is shown. The club also uses these screens during the pre-match build up and during breaks in play to improve the match night presentation. The rinks lighting system appeared to have been upgraded during the 2009-2010 season, and an LED screen was fitted above the scoreboard. This screen currently advertise in-rink events.
Since opening, the building has been subject to a number of alterations. The first major alteration was the addition of a stage area situated in 'Block 2'. This is currently being used by the cheerleaders and team mascot of the Manchester Phoenix
Manchester Phoenix
Manchester Phoenix are a professional ice hockey team from Altrincham, Greater Manchester, England. The club was formed in 2003 as a result of the efforts of supporters group Friends of Manchester Ice Hockey to bring top-level ice hockey back to Manchester after Manchester Storm folded in...
ice hockey team during breaks in play. The building also features a licensed bar, which is currently only open on match nights. The bar was renovated during the 2009-2010 season, with a susspended ceiling being fitted (previously the bars 'ceiling' was the underside of the seating terrace above it). A dehumidification system was installed during the 2008–2009 season to help maintain the quality of the ice, which had been a cause of concern for some visiting clubs and match officials. Evidence of this came from some lengthy pre match inspections and discussions occurring on-ice (eye-witness account). The most recent alteration has been the construction of a hospitality area at the back of 'Block 7', for the entertaining of sponsors. This was constructed during the 2009-10 season. As of the start of the 2010-11 season, this block will be the official 'VIP/Sponsors' block. During the summer of 2010, the rink and ice hockey club are making a further alteration with the installation of luxury seating, handrails, and a bar to 'Block 15'. This block of seating will be known as the 'Gold Seating' block.
The rink has a life expectancy of 15 years, but is expected to be replaced in approximately 5 years time by a larger permanent facility on land adjacent to the current build. The permanent facility is the anchor point of a larger development planned for the venues site, known as the Altair Development.
The rink opened its doors to the public for ice skating sessions on 16 March 2007.
The first sold out event at the rink was for the 2007–2008 EIHL playoff quarter final, where the capacity of the building was announced as being 2,150 by Manchester Phoenix
Manchester Phoenix
Manchester Phoenix are a professional ice hockey team from Altrincham, Greater Manchester, England. The club was formed in 2003 as a result of the efforts of supporters group Friends of Manchester Ice Hockey to bring top-level ice hockey back to Manchester after Manchester Storm folded in...
MD Neil Morris before the game.
The Altrincham Ice Dome is also home to four Synchronized Skating Teams, two of which compete at Elementary Level 'The Twizzles' and 'The Silver Blades', an Adult Team, 'Blade Runners' and 'Team I.S.S' who compete at Intermediate Level. 'Team I.S.S' were the first synchronized skating team to form at the Dome close to its opening in 2007. Since their formation they have won the Scottish Synchronized Skating Championships in 2008 and won the silver medal at the 2010 British Synchronized Skating Championships. All Altrincham Teams are coached by David Mcgrowther and Sam Ozard.
Building description
The building contains an ice pad measuring 57m by 26m, constructed on a sand base with an ice thickness of 1.5 inches which is fully enclosed by plexiglass and wood barriers (also known as 'dasher boards'). The building uses a horseshoe arrangement for the seating contained within. This seating is raised up above the ice level, creating an ice level concourse. Disabled seating is provided on a raised platform at ice level, in the open end of the horseshoe. At both ends of the ice pad, netting is hung from the ceiling to the plexiglass, as per IIHF safety regulations to prevent injury to crowd members from stray pucks hit out of the ice. At the top of Block 7 is a partially enclosed hospitality area built for use by the sponsors of the resident ice hockey team. A bar area is also being added to the rear of Block 15.All of the buildings other facilities (toilets, concession stands, skate hire, storage lockers, public bar, changing rooms, etc.) are arranged around the concourse at ice level, on the outer wall of the building. The rink shop is located at the front of the building, adjacent to the box office.