Bangor City Council To Hold Public Meeting Monday To Vote On 75 Million Dollar Rec. Center & Ice Rink On Griffin Road

In January of 2024, we told you about an ongoing effort the City of Bangor had to improve area entertainment and athletic facilities in the city and that City officials were eyeing a large stretch of land along Griffin Road for a future Parks & Recreation/Ice Arena.

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After two years of talks, a Recreational Facilities Feasibility Study, and the creation of a special committee to look into the subject, officials have finally come up with a plan.

They want to get your input on it, before they vote on the issue next week, so they're holding a public hearing on the subject in advance of the vote Monday at 7 PM at the City Council Chambers in City Hall.

According to the City, the idea would be to replace the existing the aging Parks & Rec facility on Main Street  and Sawyer Arena on 13th Street, with a brand new combined facility on the Griffin Road, rather than fix them up.

"The recommendation was to replace and not repair those two facilities because the current conditions in both buildings are beyond renovation and no longer meet current needs."

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The project details listed on the Parks and Recreation Page of the City of Bangor Website, the new combined facility would sit on a city-owned 40 acre lot along the Griffin Road, across from Husson University.

It would feature a dedicated lobby with a reception desk, social areas, meeting spaces and conference rooms.

There will also be a multi-generational space for use by both teens and senior citizens, along with a gymnasium, indoor walking/running track, multipurpose rooms for classes and physical instruction, an exercise space with weights and cardio equipment, an indoor playground and childcare center, an art room and an industrial kitchen.

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A separate space within that property would hold the ice rink with spectator seating, locker rooms for the athletes, a referee locker room and physical trainer room, a concessions stand and a skate sharpening/rental center.

The price tag for all these new amenities has been set at 75-million dollars to construct the new combined use-Parks & Rec/Ice Area facility.

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That would increase Bangor homeowners property taxes by several hundreds of dollars.

"For a homeowner of a $250,000 home, the tax increase, if this bond were to pass, would represent approximately an additional $300 on the annual tax bill."

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They encourage those who cannot make Monday evening's meeting but who still want to voice their opinion on the matter before it goes to vote, to reach out to Bangor City Councilors via email at councilors@bangormaine.gov.

Meanwhile, that Bangor Area YMCA has already started to build their brand new 82,000 square foot facility, which offers many of the same things this new proposed Parks & Rec build is touting, near Davis Court and Talbot Park. The Bangor Y build will cost $57.8 million dollars when all is said and done, and is completed in the Spring of 2027.