This time next year, a new rink will be up and running in Henderson.

Earlier this summer, Henderson mayor Debra March and the city council unanimously approved a lease agreement with the Vegas Golden Knights to build and operate an indoor hockey facility in the downtown area.

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The Henderson hockey facility will be built on 3.2 acres at the southwest corner of Water Street and Atlantic Avenue, adjacent to Henderson City Hall on a site currently occupied by the Henderson Convention Center, which will be demolished this summer.

The new facility is tentatively scheduled for completion by July 2020 with an estimated construction cost of $25 million.

“The city’s partnership with the iconic Vegas Golden Knights will be a catalyst for business investment and social activity in Henderson’s burgeoning downtown area,” said March. “The team already has a huge fan base in Henderson and their presence in our community will actively engage residents and the next generation of players in the sport of hockey.”

Proposed facility amenities include two NHL regulation-size ice sheets, retail space, a full-service restaurant overlooking the ice and Water Street, and approximately 5,000 square feet of meeting space. The project will expand the recreational facilities available to the community through youth and adult hockey programs and leagues, youth and adult figure skating programs, free hockey play and open skate events, tournaments, and camps for hockey and figure skating. The facility will also be home to five official watch parties annually and host player and team executive appearances.

During the first three years of the agreement, the Golden Knights will award 20 grants of $500 each to Henderson residents younger than 18 years old who come from at-risk or lower-income homes to be used for any of the programming offered at the facility.

“Henderson is a hockey hotbed,” said Golden Knights president Kerry Bubolz. “The passion for the Golden Knights in Henderson has been remarkable and we are grateful for the community’s incredible support. We are confident the project will help contribute to the continued revitalization of the Water Street District.”

— Matt Mackinder

(Aug. 13, 2019)