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Juneau's first public-access athletic facility to be constructed in about 30 years celebrated its grand opening Feb. 22 amid figure skaters, hockey players, and ice lovers galore.
The 31,900 square foot Treadwell Ice Arena was designed by Wayne Jensen, an architect and co-owner of Juneau-based architectural firm Jensen, Yorba, Lott Inc., and was developed by Coogan Construction.
Jensen said the facility, which includes an Olympic-sized hockey rink and 10 miles of refrigeration piping, would be nondescript were it not for one architectural quirk.
"It's just a big metal building, it's really only unique in that it's built on piling," he said.
The plot is set on a former beach in Douglas' Savikko Park, which, Jensen said, made the soil difficult to work with. But, with some engineering expertise and a separate foundation for the ice slab, developing the arena was a success, he said.
"The building itself is...