Operation of an Outdoor Ice Rink at Veterans Plaza in Silver Spring, Maryland

Montgomery County is soliciting proposals from interested and qualified ice-skating rink operators to manage, operate and maintain the Silver Spring Ice Rink at Veterans Plaza as a first-class outdoor seasonal (October and April each year) ice-skating facility on a management fee basis and without expense to the County. The Silver Spring Ice Rink facility (the “Facility”) that is located on Veterans Plaza in the center of vibrant downtown Silver Spring, Maryland. Montgomery County intends to enter into one (1) contract to provide for the operations, scheduling and maintenance of the facility, the equipment to be provided by the operator and the economic terms of the contract. Montgomery County requires the services of an ice-skating management firm with experience to operate the Silver Spring Ice Rink in a manner that residents and guests of Montgomery County will be provided with an ice-skating facility that is professionally managed, expertly maintained and properly staffed. The Contractor will be required to have a celebratory opening each year to be coordinated with the Silver Spring Regional Center.

Skating at the rink should not be principally conceived as a one-time or touristic experience, but also as a beloved local amenity, used broadly by the whole residential community in Silver Spring, as a winter tradition for the Silver Spring area neighborhoods. As such, all proposals submitted in response to this RFP must be operated as a public facility, with public access and reasonable use rates.

Veterans Plaza was built in 2010 and since then this outdoor area has provided space for wide-ranging community use. Veterans Plaza is an outdoor plaza, which provides a unique space for civil dialogue, summer concerts, outdoor festivals, and live entertainment. The seasonal ice rink is located on Veterans Plaza under a permanent pavilion cover.