Eager to learn ice-skating tricks, Belmont resident Claudia Matzko’s granddaughter, Penny, age 4, smiled and said, “I want to do twirls,” as she waited outside the new Belmont Sports Complex’s James P. “Skip” Viglirolo Rink on Saturday for its grand opening.
Local politicians, VIPs, and even National Hockey League Hall of Famer and former Bruin Captain Zdeno Chara, paid homage over the weekend to the hard work Belmont residents, volunteers, and donors put into making the new rink a reality.
“It was the support of the community that got us here,” said Gail Harrington, daughter of Viglirolo, the rink’s namesake. Her father, who died at age 95 in June, was a lifelong Belmont resident and an acclaimed hockey coach. He served in the Korean War and worked for more than 50 years in the town’s Parks and Recreation Department.
Multiple generations of Viglirolo’s family attended the outdoor celebration, including Harrington’s son, Quinn Harrington, a current Belmont High senior and hockey team captain.
“He was so thrilled [to be at the ceremony],” Gail Harrington said of her son, beaming.
Standing outside on the cold, sunny afternoon, the large crowd listened as speakers thanked volunteers and contributors while detailing the challenges the town faced before creating the facility.
Describing the sports complex as the “rebirth” of two now-demolished buildings – the former Viglirolo rink and the James Paul White Field House, named for a Belmont athlete killed in World War II during the Battle of the Bulge – Select Board Chair Matt Taylor encouraged future users to fill the facility with new memories and experiences.
Other officials praised the town’s dedication to making the complex as eco-friendly and sustainable as possible, including the decision to use photovoltaic panels for solar energy and making it a Freon-free facility.
Chara, who towered above the crowd even before he stepped onto the small stage, told attendees, “I don’t see just a building.” Instead, he said, he saw the complex as a place where future generations could work on making their athletic dreams a reality.
Sports “can have a profound impact” on kids’ lives, said state Rep. David Rogers, recalling how his coaches became surrogate fathers to him after his own dad died when he was young. Athletics also teach teamwork, competition and give children a sense of camaraderie.
“It’s going to bring the whole community together,” said Mark Haley, chair of the Rink Building Committee.
First Impressions
While Belmont Youth Hockey has been using the rink since its soft opening on Nov. 1, most grand-opening attendees had yet to set foot inside the town’s newest sports facility.
After a brief skating demonstration, pop tunes from “K-Pop Demon Hunters” blasted throughout the facility, welcoming the public to the ice.
While some helmet-wearing kids confidently zipped around, others were more tentative, clutching onto friends or gripping the curved wall for support.
Resident Natalie Lockwood, who said she had never skated before, cautiously waited at the rink entrance with her 5-year-old daughter, Eloise. Eloise said she was excited to try out the sport and wanted to take lessons, as well as play hockey.
Brittany Hatfield, who watched her son Oliver, 7, expertly navigate his way through the crowd, said he’d been skating since he was 4.
“It’s his favorite thing,” she said. Her husband, originally from California, used his experience roller skating to become their son’s Belmont Mites hockey coach.
Appropriately wearing a Bruins jersey, Jeff Kerzner, a member of Belmont High’s Class of 1982, remembered skating near Underwood School as a kid. Although the lifelong town resident last got on the ice a couple of years ago, he said he felt great trying out the new rink and was relieved he hadn’t fallen. Glad officials decided to continue to honor Skip Viglirolo, Kerzner said he intends “to take full advantage of this rink for exercise” in the future.
Resident Yunyun Zhu, who brought her 7-year-old daughter to the opening, said, “I think it’s great … it’s really important for the kiddos.”
“Maybe I will try it,” she added.
More Details
Although the facility is now open for organized team activities, the town is putting “a pause” on public skate until staffing is complete and all remaining work has been completed.
“It’s still not 100% turned over to the town,” said Town Administrator Patrice Garvin, noting the contractor, Skanska, is still on site. “We don’t like when we have to go forward and pause but it’s really necessary in this case.”
As The Voice previously reported, the complex will have two sources of funding, according to . “The current fiscal year’s budget is approximately $300,000,” she said. That amount has been proposed to increase to $355,000 for the fiscal year 2027. Money is also being built into the facilities budget to accommodate the new building coming online.
The second source of funding is a revolving fund established by Town Meeting in May. With a spending limit of $300,000, the revolving fund — which captures income from rental revenue — will cover part-time salaries and expenses, including the concession stand and general maintenance, according to Garvin.
The sports complex features:
- Bleacher seating for 208.
- Five accessible seating options.
- Skate-changing seats for recreational and youth skaters.
- Four dedicated locker rooms with 25 lockers each for Belmont High teams. Four dressing rooms for both home and away teams. Locker rooms will be available for additional sports teams.
- Skate rentals.
- Three restrooms are located up front, including a family restroom with a changing table.
- There will be two concession windows — one serving the rink and another serving Harris Field athletics.
- A dedicated office for the athletic trainer.
- Two Zambonis.
