Tenorio: Kasabuski’s worth outweighs its financial difficulties

How do we determine the value of a building to a community? Do we gauge it by its financial profit and loss, or do we use more intangible details?For Kasabuski Arena, these questions need a resolution. Located on Forest Street in Saugus, Kasabuski is running a deficit and needs repair. Town manager Andrew Bisignani is considering leasing the rink to address cost concerns; bids open later this month.”If the 42,877 square foot building is not leased,” my colleague on the news desk, Chris Stevens, wrote last month, “the town will have to pick up the tab for the $650,000 deficit, which would cut into the town’s budget substantially.”The financial status of Kasabuski, then, poses challenges for both town officials and entities considering leasing the rink. As Stevens wrote, “(Why) would anyone want to take over a rink that needs more than $1 million in repairs and comes with a half million-dollar deficit?”Bisignani told Stevens that the rink “could be a money maker,” but there are other issues involved here, and both relate to access: access to recreational space, and equality of access to that space.Through Kasabuski, Saugus makes a positive statement to its residents and those of surrounding areas by providing a venue for exercise, whether through hockey or figure skating. The rink is open from 6:30 a.m. to 11 p.m. seven days a week fulfilling these functions in an area that is relatively sparse in providing such outlets. Had Tom Sawyer and Huckleberry Finn grown up in Saugus, they might have spent all their free time strolling through the Square One Mall instead of exploring the mighty Mississippi.”Aside from people walking up in Breakheart (Reservation), or using the track at the middle school, I’m not so sure (about recreational opportunities),” Kasabuski managing director John Hatch said in an interview on Thursday. “The softball field out back is busy from, weather permitting, March to October, and Saugus National Little League practices and plays there (in addition to Elks Field and the Oaklandvale School field). Church groups play softball there, and firefighters use the ballfield on Tuesday nights.”However, he said, “I’m not sure there’s any other recreational facility in town that does as much as we do.”Kasabuski also seems to provide beneficial opportunities for both boys and girls, through hockey and skating.”We’re equal,” Hatch said, noting the successes of the Wakefield and Saugus-Beverly girls hockey teams, both of which use Kasabuski as their home rink. He added that the New England Figure Skating program “has the ice packed” on Tuesday nights and Sunday afternoons.”I’d say we have no problems at all in boy-girl ratio,” he said.Kasabuski fills a significant void in Saugus. Without it, the area would lose a source of physical fitness and enjoyment to the 4,200 people who use Kasabuski each week.I’m not asking for a business or the town to leap to the rescue, no questions asked. I am, however, requesting that businesses and municipal officials consider the intangible benefits of Kasabuski. In a time when obesity is repeatedly cited as a problem for children, and when female students seek increased athletic opportunities, Kasabuski offers a solution in both areas. Whether through public or private support, it deserves to continue providing these services to the community.Rich Tenorio is an Item sports copy editor.