Pasco News
Skating center sustains heavy damage from Debby
By Eric Horchy | Suncoast News
Published: July 14, 2012
PORT RICHEY - Out-of-control skaters and the occasional mischievous teens are standard concerns at any skating rink, yet mere child's play in comparison to the trouble that rolled in last month.Published: July 14, 2012
Port Richey's SpinNations Skating Center, on low-lying property at 8345 Congress St., is susceptible any time floodwaters begin to rise in West Pasco. Tropical Storm Debby was no exception.
Owner Tiffany Balay, whose family has operated the center since 1998, estimated damage in excess of $400,000. The 30,000-square-foot facility had five to six inches of standing water inside for nearly four straight days.
"Everything, really," Balay said Tuesday afternoon when asked what was affected by the flooding. "If you come in, literally everything that's there now is just concrete walls and floors."
The biggest casualty was the wooden skating surface. Its replacement alone will cost $200,000 to $300,000, Balay said.
Most, but not all, of the skating floor at SpinNations was replaced in 2004, when flood waters twice inundated portions of the facility.
"This is the first time we've had to replace the entire floor," Balay said. "This is the worst flood that has ever happened to us, for sure."
Despite the Debby-related damage, SpinNations has responded quickly with repairs and expects to be back in business in time for a Saturday, Aug. 4, grand re-opening.
Technically, Balay said, skating will resume Aug. 3 with half-off admissions from 7:30 p.m. to 11 p.m.
ehorchy@suncoastnews.com or (727) 815-1071