The Bucharest City Hall announced that work has already started on the new Mihai Flamaropol skating rink, which is part of the Lia Manoliu Sports Complex. The project is estimated to be completed in about two years.

The old building of the skating rink was in an advanced state of decay and was demolished at the end of last year.

The contract, which has a total value of RON 100 million (some EUR 22 million) without VAT, was awarded to the association made of Italian group Astaldi and Romanian group UTI. According to Bucharest mayor Gabriela Firea, the City Hall will cover a third of the investment, namely RON 33.5 million (EUR 7.3 million).

“We budgeted RON 33.5 million for this project and I assure you that, together with my team, I will take all the necessary measures so that the pace at which the work is done to be the one we all want, so that the work is completed in time. In less than two years, Romania’s national hockey and ice skating teams must be able to prepare and train in the best conditions, on a new rink that is properly equipped, and thus be able to represent Romania internationally,” Firea said.

The new ice skating rink will have a capacity of 3,100 places, and will be opened to both professionals and amateurs. Moreover, the City Hall expects the new artificial rink to also host important international competitions.

The building, which will cover some 9,500 sqm, will have a dual function: ice rink and sports and leisure center.

The sports and leisure center will host spaces for various “classical” physical activities such as swimming, wellness, basketball, and fitness as well as urban activities such as skateboarding, skating, and biking, according to the City Hall’s statement. It will also have retail spaces for sports equipment as well as cafes and restaurants.

The project also provides the construction of a parking lot for over 100 cars and the arrangement of 14,000 sqm of green spaces.

Last year, Romanian billionaire Ion Tiriac inaugurated a new ice skating rink in Otopeni. His rink was built in three months with an investment of under EUR 4 million. Tiriac plans to develop a sports complex around it.

Bucharest’s Cantacuzino Palace to be restored under EUR 9.8 mln project

Irina Popescu, irina.popescu@romania-insider.com

(Photo source: Pmb.ro)