Soap Lake rink on a roll; set to open
The 300-plus stock of skates, shown here, Chuck Walsh-Hendrick inherited with the rink came in a variety of sizes and each has its own cubby in a back room.
Rebecca Pettingill/Columbia Basin Herald
SOAP LAKE — The old roller skating rink in Soap Lake is making a comeback after nearly half a decade.
Under new ownership, the rink, newly named Hollywood Roll, is set to open Saturday.
Chuck and Raquel Walsh-Hendrick bought the rundown rink at 48 Moses Lake Ave. NW in August and have been revamping and updating the rink since Sept. 2.
So far, they have replaced the carpet, demolished some partial walls, fixed the lights and sound system, repaired the bathrooms and bought rollerblades to go along with the regular skates.
Before opening, they will also repaint parts of the inside and outside of the building and sand and coat the rink floor. They will have concessions of pre-packaged foods, such as pepperoni sticks, chips and candy bars, due to recommendations from the Grant County Health District, but Chuck said he plans to expand the concessions to foods more normal for roller rinks, such as hotdogs, pretzels, soda and mini pizzas, when approved.
Eventually, Chuck said he wants to add some arcade games inside the rink and batting cages, and mini golf behind the rink. He wants to make it more of a fun center rather than just a rink.
The new name for the rink, Hollywood Roll, comes from Chuck’s nickname when he would skate for derby as a teenager. Hollywood caught on because Chuck would show off a bit during his skating and try to be flashy.
He said he has always loved skating. He not only skated, but worked at roller rinks for several years. He said he wanted to bring the joy and opportunity to others he had from roller rinks.
The Soap Lake rink is used some evenings for local roller derby teams to practice and Chuck said it will continue to host that. He also said he wants to start a speed and hockey team. The teams are open to people of all ages.
Each day’s $5 entry cost this weekend includes skate rentals. Hollywood Roll will open from noon to 4 p.m. and 7 to 11 p.m. Saturday and from 1 to 5 p.m. Sunday.
After opening weekend, the rink will open for public skating Wednesday through Sunday. Each day has different rates and times.