OVERVIEW

This point datalayer containing all of the ice skating rinks and arenas in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts was created by the Bureau of Environmental Health (BEH), Massachusetts Department of Public Health (MDPH). The Community Sanitation Program (CSP) of the CEH, MDPH obtained the rink addresses and associated attributes. The CSP monitors skating rinks, as they are bound by the state sanitary code related to indoor air quality and ice making. The GIS Program mapped the location of these facilities for general planning and analysis purposes. Included in this layer are rinks both publicly and privately owned, as well as those located on school campuses. MassGIS stores and distributes the layer as ICERINKS_PT.

Rinks data were gathered by the CSP, BEH, MDPH, and delivered to the GIS Center, CEH, DPH in Microsoft Excel format. The spreadsheet was imported to a Microsoft Access database table and geocoded using ESRI's ArcMap 9.1 software against GDT Streets Data (v15.3). Through the use of color ortho photography and various web sites the geocoding results were moved to more accurately represent the physical location of the rink. Pictometry images at http://local.live.com were used in some cases where the rinks had been built after the ortho photography was taken. In the vast majority of cases the points were placed directly on the roof of the facility. Where a facility contains more than one rink at the same location, the points' accuracy is limited to the facility itself; as it was not possible to determine the exact rink locations within a building. The data layer was given a final review by Department of Conservation and Recreation staff, since many of the rinks are owned and/or leased by DCR. MassGIS performed additional quality assurance.

The datalayer's point attribute table has the following items:

FACIL_NAME		Name of facility
ADDRESS		Street address of facility
CITY_TOWN		City or town in which the facility is located
TOWN_ID		Numeric identifier for Massachusetts municipalities (1-351)
PHONE		Telephone number of facility
FACIL_TYPE		Facilty type code  DCR - State owned, Division of Conservation and Recreation (DCR)  DCRP - State owned (by DCR) but privatized, leased by third party, or run by a municipality  Public - Privately owned but open to the public (for skating hours or other events)  School - Facility located at a school, K-12, public and private, and colleges, etc.
RINK_SIZE		Size of rink  Full - standard-sized rink, NHL- or Olympic-size or similar  Mini - smaller than full-sized rink
RINK_ID		Unique numeric identifier for each facility

MAINTENANCE

MDPH maintains the layer and will provide any updates to MassGIS.

In May 2007 The Bog rink in Kingston was added to the layer.

Last Updated 8/19/2008
EOEA Disclaimer | Privacy Policy