A Dark Cloud Hangs Over Local Skating Clubs
Is Skating Fading Away in Chatham-Kent?
The cause of this decline, is being directly correlated to ice time costs in Chatham-Kent according to local citizens who have been analyzing data, meeting with local government, and searching for solutions for what will almost certainly lead to further declined enrollment, and eventually the closure of local skating clubs.
As ice costs have increased from $111 to $143 for skating clubs between 2007 and 2011, and again to $151 this year, total participation has dropped from 1,166 to 934, in the same period, and reportedly will be drastically lower again this season. Some clubs in Chatham-Kent, are seeing a more than 50% decrease in enrollment this season.
With clubs located in Blenheim, Wallaceburg, Tilbury, Chatham, Walpole Island, Ridgetown, and Dresden, this epidemic of young athletes dropping out of organized skating, is wide spread in Chatham-Kent.
Coaches and volunteers are concerned that skating, traditionally referred to as figure skating, will soon be financially out of reach for the average family in Chatham-Kent, particularly as ice times continue to rise, and fundraising avenues, particularly local bingos, become less beneficial to clubs.
The largest jump in ice time costs came in 2010 as hourly rates skyrocketed from $126 to $143 with the introduction of HST by the Ontario government. No club in Chatham-Kent pays less than $20,000 per year for ice time, with some approaching the $100,000 range.
This situation, threatening organized ice sports, isn’t only impacting local skating clubs however, as local hockey programs have also seen a marked decrease in enrollment.
With ice rate increases inevitable again each year in the near future, a dark cloud is looming over many skating clubs in Chatham-Kent. This future, where organized sports such as ice skating and hockey become less accessible, has local coaches, executives, and volunteers worried, who stated that Chatham-Kent’s obesity, heart disease, and asthma rates are far above national averages.
Continue to follow the Chatham-Kent Sports Network for more on this topic. In the coming weeks, CKSN will talk to local coaches and skating executives featuring more in depth interviews and information regarding this issue.
I am involved with one of the local skating clubs and agree completely with the article and information provided. Our Municipality needs to take a long hard look at the cost of the ice. If the increase in cost was to support the maintenance of the local arena itself, it may be easier to explain but it is not. Every cost to run each arena is in this increase including wages. Maybe it is time to freeze wage increases/benefits at the expense of our youth.
Oh come on, the reason for the decline is because coaches are charging $20 or more $ per half hour, so let me see here, I don’t know one blue collar municipal city worker who makes over $40 an hour! And actually coaching staff make more then that because on top of getting paid from each student they also get paid from the club! So actually there wages are far more then any blue collar munipal worker!!!! Before you complain about the Municipality the clubs should be looking at themselves! Always easy to blame someone else isn’t it!
Now, it’s been close to a decade since I skated and coached, and things may have changed since then, but back when I was coaching CanSkate I wasn’t paid. Most was volunteer, and if I was paid for teaching “groups” as we called it (I honestly don’t remember ever being paid, but I was 14 years old, so maybe I was), the small amount was probably automatically put towards my own ice time. Those CanSkate coaches were skaters themselves. Most of the coaches that taught these group sessions were senior skaters in the club – whatever money we made we put back into the club. During this time there would be one Club coach on the ice for health and safety reasons. And they would normally be teaching a private lesson.
Now, when you progress to the point where you start to take private lessons, yes you pay. It’s like if your child were to take private tennis lessons or private piano lessons. You’re paying for one-on-one time with a coach who has considerable experience and training. But that’s a choice.
Things may have changed since then, but I don’t think so. Private lessons are completely separate from the concept of ice time. You choose to enroll your child in private lessons and you choose to incur that extra cost.
That may be so in some of the larger communities. In smaller communities the coaches are paid much less than the $20 you are talking about. Coaches for ANY sport are paid based on their qualifications from the National Coaching Association of Canada. These qualifications are required to ensure programs are implemented safely and skills are taught in the proper progression. If a student is high performance and competing at a high level then yes the fee per hour does get quite high. The only time coaches that I know of get paid more money is for private lessons; then the student pays for the ice time used and the cost for their coach. The cost of the coaching is between the parents and the coach.
I’m not sure if you have had any experience whatsoever with Figure Skating P, but your jab at how much a coach makes is completely insensible. As with any job, costs incur. Coaches don’t just waltz on the ice and call themselves coaches. Training to be a coach isn’t a one-stop-shop- it’s a progression and it costs big money and lots of time that the coach invests themselves. The more qualified your coach, the more he/she should be paid. This is in line with any other job out there that requires additional training/ schooling a person is required to do to keep their quaifications at the highest standard. I would say $20 is an “okay” wage for a skating instructor who has to pre-plan their lessons ON THEIR OWN TIME, prepare kids for test days that DO NOT provide payment for a complete wage/ hour, attend competitions that again, DO NOT provide a full wage/ hour. Yes, some larger clubs in centres such as London, Toronto, etc., may charge costs that seem too high for you, but around Chatham-Kent, skating clubs are reasonable. Frankly, I no longer coach because I don’t make enough to sacrifice my time with my family. If you want to talk about cost, let’s look at AAA hockey in comparison to competitive figure skating. If you want the extra benefits of elite coaching and great exposure, then yes, costs will rise- this is nothing new! If you want to participate for “fun”, then participate on the fun sessions and avoid your one-on-one coaching that costs money. Most volunteers are not qualified coaches and that is exactly why they are volunteers. Sorry, but very little is free anymore because the cost of living simply doesn’t make that a feasible option.
The focus here is the cost of ice. I have been involved in the WFSC and WMHA for years, and the past and current costs of ice time are absolutely ridiculous and it is impacting enrolment in both sports. It seems that many things an individual wants to do to stay healthy and aspire to be a better person costs far too much money! It’s not even reasonable to rent the ice during the day for an hour to hang out with friends and get extra ice time on holidays and PD Days. This is a waste of a resource that if affordable, would be used on an hourly basis and would keep kids off the streets.
P. – I beg to differ with your comments! The biggest portion of registration costs to skaters is the ice time….yes, coaching fees for CANSkate sessions also enter the picture on a smaller scale. The ratio of club coach to a CANSkate skater is 1 to 10 skaters with assistance of what we call Program Assistants and yes, they are volunteers not unlike anyone who sits on the club board of directors. I have been a figure skating volunteer parent for close to 35 years and I’m still involved volunteering for the skaters in our municipality and beyond, because someone did it for my kids who have long grown up and moved away.
I thilnk you need to have more of an informed opinion by attaining the facts of what it takes to run a skating club. It is a business that is run by volunteers. Skate Canada has strict guidelines on what a Professional skating coach has to do before becoming “qualified” and yes “Qualified” Coaches are hired to teach the skaters in any Skate Canada sanctioned club. The coaches in this area are paid less than the average in comparison to other parts of the country…..And the national body for skating, sets the standards for the coaches so that children are taught properly how to skate.
And the response from “Old Timer” states many excellent points about coaching, private lessons vs. group lessons. The issue of ice cost for minor sport is what is up for discussion and the issue of coaching is not relevant!
My daughter was new to skating last year and excelled with it. I decided to participate on the Wallaceburg Skating Club executive this year in order to help fundraise and keep things going. Our municipality needs to take a look at the costs incurred to parents who make sacrifices to pay for the skating and promote healthy activities for young girls to participate in. Skating has provided increased confidence, increased physical activity, and also the spirit of volunteerism. My daughter is now volunteering with the younger Canskaters twice per week. How can I as a parent take that away due to costs when she is learning so much how important it is to be healthy and give back to her community?
P (I am sure that is not your real name)…my daughter skated for 15 years and the cost was extensive with private lessons but those were our choice. What this article is referring to is the cost of the ice time which is above and beyond the cost of the lessons. If a skater is only taking group lessons then they do not pay for the lessons but do have to pay a registration fee which I know barely covers the ice time that the clubs have to pay. This is the same for all of the sports playing in our local arenas. The municipality needs to find some balance or these buildings will be empty as no on will be able to afford to run a club in them. I would like to hear from our council members on this….any takers???????
Karen,
If one Councillor responds, I will be very much surprised.
If you look at the minutes of council you will find that every single member voted in favor of the last increase and this one is set for an automatic increase every year for five years!!!
I’d like to echo the prior sentiments I rolled across.
Let me assure you, this ‘issue’ has absolutely 210% NOTHING to do with local coaches and their pay rate. In fact, I find that argument completely ridiculous. But hey, someone always needs something to complain about 😉
I will start by saying I am biased in this situation because I have a wife who works full time and then works a second “part time” job (which ends up being another full time job) as a local figure skating coach. Trust me, the local coaches who go about their work in this field properly, definitely earn their paygrade! The pain, drama, and BS that comes with the territory is overwhelming. Makes coaching hockey and putting up with the parents and kids there seem like a walk in the park!
This argument has NOTHING to do with that. To get private lessons and pay anything more than an annual registration to take part in whatever portion of group skating you want your child in is completely your choice. So to complain about that is unfound and ludicrous. If you choose to get your kid into that level of skating, competitively, there’s a reason you’ve done so. And again, that was by your own choice.
Karen hit the nail on the head.
To point a finger at coaches, who for the most part get involved on the local scale because they love the sport and are giving back to something that helped make them who they are in life, is actually pretty sad to see.
Thank your local coaches. They’ve likely earned it a lot more than you realize.
I think this is a two fold issue. First I think our councillors and municipality has no idea about the impact their constant increases in ice times are having on families. Less and less families are financially able to put their kids in organized sports, in particular individual sports such as figure skating where the price isn’t shared across a larger team. I understand there are group skates and the ice is shared at almost all times, but each athlete also needs to pay for their own costumes etc, when in other sports, these jerseys are usually re-used over years.
It appears this is a mostly skating crowd responding to this thread, and “P” seemed to get jumped on, but clubs also need to look at what coaches are paid. In my opinion, this is similar to sending a young hockey player to power skating or a skills camp, so the cost is justified in a way, but even at these camps the costs are shared for what might be considered private lessons.
No other sport has paid coaches, not AAA hockey (unless you’re in Toronto), and Junior hockey coaches below the OHL get anywhere from nothing, to not enough to cover their gas.
In the end it comes back to ice costs though. When the rate is $170 in two years, and $185 two years after that, for an hour (which actually only gets you 50 minutes, 45 if the arena workers want to pull the union card), it gets difficult for our kids to get ice time.
Could be worse though, we could be paying $5 per parent to walk through the doors and $400-$750 an hour for ice at a privitilzed arena in the GTA.
Bobber, when the councillors voted to increase rates how many of them talked to Minor Sporting groups that would be subject to paying these increases? After the news went public that CK justified their increase some groups contacted their Council Reps. I am not sure how many centres actually had the chance now to sit down with their Rep to come up with some options but it is contradictory to CK’s Master Park Plan when CK says they are trying to promote Healthy Living in and turn around and hurt the very organizations that DO Promote Healthy Living. Families are financially strapped, no doubt, as the typical family in CK that has children under 18 are the $27-30K earners. So what do we do? Maybe hold our Council Reps Accountable? The election happened in October of 2010 and the measuring stick was their “platform”.
And many of us spoke with our Councillors before it went to a vote and were assured that it would likely not go through due to the support of many of the other councillors for no increase!
Many skating coaches are earning the same rate of pay for the last five years. The significant increase in ice costs has impacted enrollment and programs being offered. Despite statistics regarding childhood obesity, younger ages using drugs and increased violence in our youths the government continues to tax the opportunities to address these issues for our children. The current economic situation cannot sustain increased costs for activities outside of school. Skating like many sports provides our children to develop social skills, independence, self-esteem and a sense of responsibity. All of which are needed to become a successful adult. It is the children who lose and bear the brunt of the increased costs and lack of activities in the community.
I would love to see the numbers that justify what organizations are charged to put these opportunities out there for our kids. I understand most cost increases are passed down the line. Wages increase, hydro costs increase, insurance increases, and on down the line it goes till it lands in the average tax payers lap, i get that. But these small town folks are the ones bearing the brunt of this economy right now already, what we don’t need is less opportunities for more money. Parents are already concerned with keeping jobs or finding jobs, sending their children to school, in some cases even putting clothes on their childs back and food in there bellies can be challenging. As costs increase for participation in minor sports and programs like the skating clubs it comes at a price of taking those opportunities away from our kids, opportunities to socialize, to interact, to learn and develope work ethics not found without sports. I can’t imagine denying my children these chances but for many in our communities, its a reality.
Bobber has made some great points and “P” has made great points to!
as some jumped on P, I think if people read the very first comment from Sharron Skipper I believe that is what P was talking about.
Unfortinitely everything costs money, Hydro,gas , water, propane or natural gas , oil and even cleaning supplys and all of that is what runs an arena for the most part and that has all gone up and I’m sure that the Municipality has felt that hit on mantaining these buildings.
I couldnt imagine the costs to keep compressors running , or the water usage that they use to make ice, or fill the machines or even to keep them running. I don’t believe people have a clue on how much it costs to run an arena, but people want a new twin pad but according to this artical the decline of enrollment is up and clubs may fold so I can a sure you that since this artical has been printed there will be no new arena. Everybody is complaining about ice fee’s and wages , if the Municipality didn’t run these buildings and it was privately owned these arena’s would be closed or run down do to the fact that they wouldn’t be able to afford to keep them going. An arena is not a profitable place,I’m sure it runs in the red , but the thing about arena’s is that it brings people to Chatham-Kent, they spend money here so everybody wins!
You can’t just blame council for raising ice fee’s or freezing wages, there is a reason on why they go up. There is a cost to everything , nothing is free in life and if it is, it will cost you in the end.
It is not the coaches fees that are hurting us. It is totally your choice to hire a coach. The clubs only pay coaches for the canskate/group lessons. The majority of helpers(PA’s) are all volunteer-parents and older skaters- who by the way do not even get a discout for their lessons. If it were not for these dedicated volunteers the clubs would not be able to operate. All of our board members who work endless hours are ALL volunteer. And we all know haw hard it is to get volunteers to help today! Some of our board members have been helping out for over 10 years because no one wants to step in to help! Some coaches in the small clubs have not had raises in over 10 years because the clubs don’t have the money. The coaches are only paid for canskate and starskate groups. The coaches wages is only a very small percent of what our clubs have to pay. It is the cost of the ice that keeps going up each year. The council does not obviously understand or care. Why don’t we invite some council members to our board meetings and show them our financial reports from the last several years. I know that this year our registrations will be down from last year. Some clubs even have had to give up time and some are still considering it. Our regular canskate lessons have gone up over $180 over the last 7 years. And that still doesn’t pay for the ice. If we charged families what we need to to pay for the ice we would have no one be able to afford it. Please to the council, come and listen to us, look over our finances in the last few years. Talk to our families that have 2 or 3 children that just want to learn to skate and keep active! It is a great sport in which we want to keep kids active and healthy!
There is a reason the arenas are called “public” or “municipal.” They were built to give our kids a chance to learn and participate in a sport. If they had been built to generate revenue, the city would and should have allowed private enterprise to build and control them.
We subsidize these arenas and parks through our tax dollars so all kids can have a chance to get physically fit, and learn the rules of a sport and thereby learn important life lessons that will serve them well as adults.
What the city is doing now is simply called ‘double dipping.’ They want us, the tax payers to pay for the arenas so the municipality can show potential investors the benefits of relocating to our towns, and then they bleed the families who actually use them. If this is the case, then just close the doors and you can show off pretty buildings – or in some cases, not such pretty buildings.
Give them all a nice shiny coat of paint and tell visiting businesses who are looking to move to Chatham Kent that we have pretty buildings, because at the current rate of price increases, they will soon be empty anyway.
Good sports, individual and team alike, make good youth citizens and teach fair play and honest competition. Kids learn there are rules in life that must be followed. If we stop teaching them the rules as a healthy lifestyle, then we can come back next year and complain about the needed increase to the police budget to deal with youth vandalism and juvenile delinquents.
As a society, we need to work together to ensure the next generation is healthy and has a healthy attitude towards competition and fair play.
We aren’t asking the city to provide us all with brand new arenas, we just want what we have to be available at a fair cost. It’s time for our elected officials to remember arenas and parks are not cash cows, but investments in our future. Unlike a certain pet project for the cultural elitists, one that still shows no chance for any kind of return, our parks and arenas pay huge dividends towards showcasing our communities.
This is not only an investment in our youth, but a responsibility to our future!
And what about the cost of the new little water park off St. Clair St……how many millions did this cost, only to be used for a few short months???
The Ridgetown Ice Illusions, Adult III team is no longer due to ice costs. This team was the longest running synchro adult team started over 25 years ago for adults over 25 years old – for people like me who use to skate as a child, and loved it . It was a chance for me to get back involved in the sport I love. I had a great time – as well as the rest of the women on the team! It folded all because of the cost. By the time we added our ice time, our coaches time ($ wasen’t really much), costumes (we’ve had the same costumes since I joined the team in 2005), competitions (we went only in 1 – in Chatham due to costs) and all other misc costs. – we had to add $$ to the pot at the end of the season just to break even.
My daughter is now in the Canskate/Starskate programs and loves it. She is taking private lessons (my choice and my $ I’m willing to spend). I paid the registration, a fundraising amount, I volunteer every week to help out, I pay out of my own pocket for both of us – skate sharpening, skate outfit (dress or warm up outfit), mittens/gloves (times two), ect ect. The alternative – she can sit around home, watching tv, playing the computer, video games not getting excercise. I already have one doing that as he does not want to skate or play hockey (and who can afford that anymore?) I don’t want to see that – but if the price of ice keeps going up – then I won’t be able to continue.
I’ve already seen one club go down due to ice costs, a team go down to ice costs – do we really want to see all these programs go down to ice costs? It is a great way for your children to meet new friends and get involved with the community and get excercise! We are not in Windsor, London or Toronto – we are in Chatham-Kent – where enough is enough – let’s bring it to a reasonable amount and get more families out there on the ice!!
Welll said!
I think to get back to the main point of contention here, we need an answer from our Municipal Council and Mayor. If a goal of our local government is to have a healthy, active community, then why are we working to create programs and keep costs accessible for the average family?
Are arenas major revenue earners for the Municipality? Do we break even? I want to know those numbers. Walk into an arena in Chatham-Kent right now and what will you find, open empty ice, all the lights on, and at least one paid employee sitting there reading the paper. That might be a start to our ice time issues. Can we not have a single central number for all ice bookings, and if no ice is booked from 8am until 2pm, we don’t pay someone to be there? That’s over $100 saved per arena per day in wages.
I keep hearing we want engaged youth here in Chatham-Kent, and council spoke last night about youth retention. How about giving them places to be healthy and to enjoy recreation?
I really wish there was a big LIKE button that I could click to your comment, Ice Guy!!!
Turn off the lights and cut other costs.
And I wish I had been at the meeting last night so I could have challenged council on that youth retention issue.
Has anyone looked at the price in West Lorne??? I hear it is alot cheaper…Why??? How can they have it so much cheaper than chatham kent?? Just curious if anyone knows the exact cost they pay to compare.
Also most clubs only have 3-4 paid coaches on the ice at group time.(for about 30-40 kids) They rest of the helpers(between 15-20) out there are ALL volunteers… They get paid nothing or get no discounts from their lessons. If not for them there would be no clubs!
Cost of Ice in West Lorne was $90/hr when this issue came up. Mooretown was less then Chatham-Kent as well.
Some CK Councillors will tell you that you can’t compare apples to oranges and that CK is unique. They’re right! Our average hourly wage for working families is lower, so this impacts us more.
As for paid coaches, in Wallaceburg we have about the same ration for coaches per skaters, and we rely on volunteers as well.
If you read the agenda from August 8 there is a report attached where CK used Tecumeh thru Windsor area as a comparison for ice rates to justify their increase. So to Henrie’s comments these are our apples and oranges.
Just a thought…Can this be printed in the Chatham Daily News to get it out to more people?
or sent in as an editorial?
working on it!
as a member of a skating club,mother,grandmother and a board member i have seen every year the decline in skaters. we want the municipality to put a freeze on ice time . this will allow the lower income families who have lost jobs to at least be able to let their kids join something they enjoy. we want our kids to stay off the streets,to learn how to gain confidence,to learn something they enjoy. coaches do receive a good pay but they do give a lot in return. you talk to any skater on the ice and they will tell you how each and everyone of those coaches have helped them one way or another. until you have been on that ice do not criticise what they are doing or what they get paid. it is very tiring and backbreaking work with no coffee breaks,lunch breaks or smoke breaks. i say freeze the cost of ice and let our hockey and figure skaters afford to come back.
I am a hockey and figure skating mom for many years and the only thing that I ever see from the Municipality are increases, how do you expect to keep clubs and arenas functioning with these increases. People just cannot afford to put their children in these two sports….Take a good look as how many children sign up for soccer it is affordable. Don’t you think that by lowering cost that the arenas would profit more??? Lets think this through as they say the more the merrier and dollar profits would be there LOWER OR FREEZE THE ICE FEES………
Another way to increase enrollment:
Maybe skating clubs should look at lowering the fees for canskate sessions to increase enrollment. if it was less expensive more parents could afford to enroll their children. The extra enrollments would cover the loss from the lower registration fees. Plus it would get more children invovled inthe skating program.