DCR rinks in Lynn, Revere among those raising prices

LYNN – Prices for hockey ice time are going up at all Department of Conservation and Recreation rinks, including those in Lynn and Revere.According to the DCR, an hour of youth hockey at all of the DCR ice rinks will go up to $175 from $160, an increase of 9 percent.Lynn Youth Hockey President Al Donovan said the cost of rink time would hurt families, especially those in the inner city.”The only programs that can survive are in towns that have money,” he said.Donovan said hockey leagues and high school teams already vie for prime hours at the rinks and the increase in cost is just another burden. Donovan said Lynn Youth Hockey opted not to freeze its $1,300 rate this year. But he added some other leagues are increasing rates and in some cases losing so many players their programs are on the verge of closing down.”We’ll lose money this year,” he said. “We try to make it up in fund raising as much as we can.”Salem-Swampscott Youth Hockey President Gino Cresta said six years ago the program had 185 players and now there are only 80. He attributed the decline in part to the economy.”We haven’t set our rates for next year yet,” he said. “Any rate increase for ice time is going to have to be passed along to the players and it is a concern. We hate to increase prices because we’re always afraid we’re pricing people out of the program. The more the numbers of participants decline, the more it costs for the remaining players.”Everett/Revere Youth Hockey President Joseph DeSantis said the league charges kids $1,400 per season for kids on a traveling team and he is very concerned about the price increase.”We’ve already seen kids priced out of the program,” he said. “We do everything we can to keep the cost down. Everyone is hurting in this economy and some families have two or three kids who want to skate but can’t. How can I tell a kid who wants to skate they can’t skate. We’re not going to raise fees. We’re just going to have to cut back and give our kids less ice time.”Arlington hockey coach Stephen Palmacci, who is the president of the Massachusetts chapter of USA Hockey, said it’s primarily blue-collar players who use DCR rinks and the change in the cost of ice time could price many of them out. He said a youth hockey program usually costs $1,000 per player for a season, which includes 40 practice sessions and 30 games.”The $15 ice cost increase would come out to over $1,000 increase per team or $70 per player,” he said. “That’s a 7 percent increase just for the ice. A family with two or three children could have to leave hockey. In the state of Massachusetts we have lost almost 1,000 players this year and fear the loss will be high next year as the economy declines? I believe this would have a negative impact on youth hockey for the middle- and low-income families.”DCR officials say the fee hikes are necessary to keep up with the cost of providing the services. The agency also conducted a study at all its facilities that charge fees to determine whether the rates were in keeping with similar agencies. Many rates, said DCR spokeswoman Wendy Fox, had not increased in more than five years.Ice fees are not the only thing heating up. The DCR is increasing many of its other fees and 19 new fees will be introduced this summer. New fees would include a $50 seasonal parking pass for the Quabbin Reservoir, a $200-an-hour fee for the use of ice rinks by college-related groups and a $25-an-hour energy use surcharge for September and October ice time. According to Fox, even with the increases DCR facilities are still less expensive than their private counterparts. She added the fees were agreed to after three public hearings held in April.(Material from the State House News Service was used in this report.)