For over 10 years, Westporters have wondered: What will the YMCA do with the Red Barn property?
Today, we know.
They’ll build the Red Barn Arena — a year-round ice rink facility — on the Wilton Road site, just off Merritt Parkway exit 20.
The project — funded by the Westport Weston Family Y, and a capital campaign — includes an NHL-regulation-size rink, spectator seating, locker rooms, a lobby and other amenities.
Computer-generated rendering of the Red Barn Ice Arena.
The design will pay homage to the Red Barn restaurant — a familiar spot for 8 decades — through architectural elements, the color palette, and preserved memorabilia (including its chandelier and iconic sign).
And of course, through the facility’s name.
Programs will include public skating, lessons, figure skating, youth and adult leagues, and summer camps.
The Red Barn Arena will also be home to Staples High School’s ice hockey teams. The boys now use Milford for practices and games; the girls’ base is in Stamford.
Another rendering.
The Y purchased the 3.2-acre parcel in 2015. It includes the restaurant building and a separate house.
It was owned by members of the Nistico family, who operated the Red Barn Restaurant from 1983 until July 2015. It had been a popular dining spot — and convenient meeting place for travelers — since the Merritt Parkway opened in the 1930s.
The Y explored many uses for the site (and fielded several requests from restaurateurs). Through member surveys and the input of an avid community group, YMCA officials decided that an ice arena would be both an important town asset, and fill a longstanding need.
It also fits with the Y’s mission: to provide recreational opportunities for individuals and families of all backgrounds and experience levels.
The Red Barn property, earlier this month. (Photo/Susan Garment)
“We couldn’t be more excited about this project,” says Westport Weston Family YMCA CEO Glen Hale.
“This facility will serve the entire town, from a child stepping on the ice for the first time to families enjoying a Friday night skate, to our high school teams finally having a home rink.”
A concrete floor can serve additional recreational purposes when the ice is not in use.
“We are grateful to the community members who have helped champion this project, and the many supporters who will help bring it to life,” Hale adds.
Russell Sherman — a project steering community member — says, “Westport is an amazing place that offers so much. But the one thing that’s always been missing since I grew up here has been a year-round ice rink for everyone to enjoy.
“The Red Barn was a place where Westport came together for decades. Now it will be again. We’re excited to create amazing memories on the same site, for generations to come.”
John McKinney is the Y’s board of trustees chair — and a fifth generation descendant of E.T. Bedford, who endowed and founded the Westport Y in 1923.
He says, “I know my family would be as excited as I am that we are building something that fits so well with our mission, and will have such a powerful impact on the community.”
Y board of directors president Juliane Sunderland says, “The Y has set a high standard for all the programs it runs. This will be no different.
“We are excited to add this facility to the Y’s offerings, and to serve even more families in Westport and the surrounding communities.”
A popular gathering spot, back in the day.
Y officials believe the Red Barn Arena will have a “positive complementary impact” on the outdoor PAL Rink at Longshore, which operates for 3 months each winter, by introducing more people to the joy of skating.
Plans for a capital campaign will be announced soon. That phase is expected to take a year and a half. Construction will take another 18 months.
Meanwhile, the Y will begin the permitting process. They note that while the current building sits in a floodplain, the new facility will be a bit away, out of that zone.
For project updates, renderings and more, click on the new website: RedBarnIceArena.com.
