This concept art shows the updated Lake Placid Olympic Center Link Building – the section that connects the 1932 and 1980 Olympic rinks. The second-floor offices are replaced by public dining rooms with a gazebo. (Image provided – Olympic Regional Development Authority)
LAKE PLACID – Visitors to the Olympic Center will soon have expanded access to panoramic views of the High Peaks, the Olympic speed skating oval, ski jumps and the combined bobsleigh track at Mount Van Hoevenberg.
The board of directors of the state’s Olympic Regional Development Authority on Friday approved a more than $ 32.9 million renovation of the Olympic Center Link Building, the section of the main street complex that connects the Olympic rinks from 1932 and 1980.
The council previously approved $ 22.8 million for renovations to the 1932 and 1980 rinks and $ 11.7 million for the replacement of the Olympic Center refrigeration system. That totals at least $ 67.4 million committed to the resort so far, although the total estimate for the resort’s upgrades when they were first announced in 2019 was $ 100 million. At the time, ORDA was considering building a parking lot at the Olympic Center, but there are currently no plans for this.
Before construction began on the Olympic Center, the second floor of the Link Building housed ORDA’s administrative offices, as well as a café with views of the Oval, High Peaks, ski jumps and bobsleigh track. . The first floor housed the Lake Placid Olympic Museum.
With the construction of a new office building on a former Church Street hospital, the offices of the Link Building will be converted. There will be an outdoor terrace on the second floor accessible to the public, an expanded dining room, interpretive exhibits and an expanded space for the museum.
“This will make it a destination with a first-rate visitor space”, said ORDA CEO Michael Pratt. “It will be a must-see place. “
ORDA plans to hire LeChase Construction Services, Gilbane Building Company, Cannon Design Architectural and Engineering and the Chazen Companies to each do a portion of the Link Building renovation, according to ORDA documents. LeChase Construction will be required to renovate the lower, ground floor and lobby levels of the Link Building and construct any additions to it, as well as construct stairs and a partial glass elevator, and work on public services. Gilbane will be asked to manage the project works and ensure that the works comply with ORDA requirements. Cannon will be asked to provide ORDA staff with information during construction, review change orders, contract documents, special inspections and more. Chazen companies will be asked to ensure that the project is carried out in accordance with building and fire codes, to perform inspections and to help obtain a certificate of occupancy.
All work on the Link Building is expected to be completed by November 30, 2022, ahead of the 2023 World University Winter Games.
At the Olympic Center, the hockey locker rooms, concession stands and the general hall of the 1980 arena will be renovated. All public washrooms will be replaced, arena seats will be replaced, and ADA compliant seats will be added. All heating, ventilation and air conditioning of the 1980 ice rink will be replaced.
The 1932 and 1980 rinks were redesigned with new boards that can be adjusted to the regulatory international or national width of the Hockey League. In addition, the 1980 ice rink lighting system has been upgraded to the level now expected for television broadcasts.
The 1932 rink is expected to be completed by November 1, the 1980 rink near Christmas, and the new refrigeration before the new year.
ORDA has modernized all the sites it manages in recent years. In Lake Placid, in the Olympic sports complex of Mount Van Hoevenberg, ORDA added a new lodge, a biathlon shooting range, a Nordic ski stadium, snow, ski slopes, a training house for bobsleigh and a roller coaster ride for tourists. The ski jumps have been refrigerated on the slopes, a gondola and a zip line, and their airstrips are being resurfaced. The base lodge at the Whiteface Mountain Ski Resort was renovated, the lodge at the middle station was rebuilt after a fire, and the gondola was replaced. The New York governor and legislature have so far invested hundreds of millions of dollars in these upgrades ahead of the World University Winter Games.