Portland’s historic Lloyd Center ice rink permanently closed on August 8, 2026, ending nearly seven decades of public skating at the mall location. The closure leaves Portland without a single ice rink within the city limits, forcing local skaters into suburban facilities.
Years of History at America’s First Mall Rink
When the Lloyd Center shopping mall opened its doors in 1960, it introduced a feature to American retail: an ice rink, which was first outdoor and then enclosed by a glass ceiling. Over the following years, that central sheet of ice evolved far beyond a mere retail attraction, serving as a cultural hub for generations of Portland residents. The venue welcomed political campaigns, including a stop on Bobby Kennedy’s 1968 campaign trail, and launched careers, notably serving as the site of Tonya Harding’s first steps on the ice in 1973.
As traditional enclosed malls struggled nationwide, Lloyd Center’s rink maintained community engagement.
Lifelong Connections and Lasting Community Bonds
For many local residents, the rink provided a consistent gathering space that transcended competitive athletics. Coaches, adult recreational skaters, and mall visitors utilized the surrounding levels for chess clubs, bridge meetings, study groups, and social gatherings as retail storefronts emptied around them in recent years.
Among the venue’s most devoted fixtures were Jerry and Tally Leonard, whose romance began at the rink in 1967 after a coach connected them based on their skating styles. The couple competed at the U.S. National Figure Skating Championships, married, raised two sons, and maintained a routine of skating at Lloyd Center four days a week for nearly six decades.
On Saturday evening before the final closure, Jerry and Tally took their final spin on the Lloyd Center ice to close out the facility’s run.
Urban Accessibility Meets the Suburban Skating Diaspora
The permanent shutdown of the facility carries logistical consequences for Portland’s skating community. Because Portland Parks & Recreation does not have a municipal ice rink in its portfolio, Lloyd Center functioned as an accessible urban alternative to private suburban clubs, situated near public transportation, light rail, and bus routes.
With the property slated for redevelopment under a plan approved by the Portland City Council, local skaters and coaches now face an uphill commute. Skaters must travel to facilities outside city limits, including Sherwood Ice Arena, Mountain View Ice Arena in Vancouver, and the Winterhawks Skating Center in Beaverton, which are difficult to reach without a car.
Instructors who spent decades building their lives around the venue expressed deep frustration over the loss. Ruth Aquino, who first stepped onto the Lloyd Center ice in 1968 at age five and coached there for more than 35 years, described the closure as heartbreaking.
Mobilizing for a New Municipal Ice Sheet
Rather than accepting the total loss of ice sports within city boundaries, community advocates have organized to demand a replacement facility. Activists from the Save Lloyd Ice Coalition—who previously lobbied city officials and garnered attention from Ilia Malinin—have transitioned their efforts into a formal nonprofit entity named the Bridgetown Ice Skating Collective.
The newly formed collective is actively fundraising and meeting with local politicians to secure a one-acre, flat parcel of land suitable for a permanent year-round rink inside Portland. In the interim, organizers are scrambling to secure ice time to bridge the gap for displaced skaters.
