Interior Sec. Doug Burgum visits NYC sports complex that risked closure until youth sports parents got involved
Interior Secretary Doug Burgum stopped by a Brooklyn sports complex Thursday to celebrate the revival of its ice rinks that almost closed for good until hockey parents pushed the White House to intervene.
The Trump cabinet member even rode the Zamboni at the Aviator Sports & Events Center in Midwood as the athletics hub was buzzing with activity – a far contrast from the gloomier prospect it faced earlier this year.
'Being here and seeing the youth here, the youth hockey players that came out tonight, seeing their gratitude because this place was at risk of being closed down,' Burgum told The Post about what made the event so special.
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4 Doug Burgum drives the Zamboni with Zamboni operator Reginald Devilme at the Aviator Sports & Events Center in Midwood.
William C Lopez/New York Post
'We're fighting hard, through the National Parks system, to ensure we keep places like this open for youth like this.'
Aviator announced in March that it would be forced to close its complex on Floyd Bennett Field because its lease with the National Parks Service was expiring in April.
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The bad news spurred scores of hockey and ice skating parents into action.
They put together a binder filled with photos of their kids and then had the youngsters write out their goals before sending it all to the White House and National Park Service.
'We had parents that actually delivered packages to the headquarters of NPS in person,' one mother, Yana Salerno, said. 'They drove to DC.'
4 Burgum meets with children and parents at the Aviator Sports & Events Center.
William C Lopez/New York Post
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The grassroots lobbying worked.
The Aviator Hockey and Figure Skating Club revealed late last month it was back in business thanks to working with the park agency and an investment firm, News 12 reported.
'I can't tell you how happy we are,' Salerno said.
'So for the one week that it closed, all the coaches went to different rinks, you know, and we followed. It's like an hour and a half every single day to get to each one of those rings. And it was just awful.'
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4 The Aviator Hockey and Figure Skating Club revealed late last month it was back in business thanks to working with the park agency and an investment firm.
William C Lopez/New York Post
4 Migrants staying at the tents at Floyd Bennett Field have been surrounding the local area, including the Kings Plaza Shopping Center, Jan. 10, 2024.
Aristide Economopoulos
Salerno's figure skating daughter Michaela said, 'I was crying when I heard the news, crying out of happiness.'
The 175,000-square-foot multi-sport facility has faced years of adversity due to COVID-19 closures and the emergency encampment that opened up in 2023 during the Big Apple's migrant crisis.
The migrant tent city closed in January and the Department of Interior announced in February that the property could not be used as a temporary shelter.
While the ice rinks are reopened and outdoor fields are expected to be used, the gymnastics studios in the building are still closed for now, director of facility Chris Werstine said.
'We're just so grateful that we have been given the opportunity to operate because now we can continue to run our programs, and have access,' he said.
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