An Idea to support our Youth…
It began as a dream in the early 1970’s. A group of local businessmen, led by Fenton Chester, formed a committee to look into building a skating facility in Lyndonville. There were many setbacks including lawsuits, a fuel crisis, and increasing costs, but the committee perservered and the arena was constructed. Funding was provided by a federal grant from the Bureau of Outdoor Recreation, which stipulated that the building had to be open on three sides; they obtained a waiver to this rule allowing for temporary walls to be constructed using overhead doors. Those doors remain today.
Finally in the fall of 1979, the dream became a reality. The Lyndon Ice Arena opened for its first season. The following spring, the board of directors of the Lyndon Area Sports Association, the organization that ran the facility for over 35+ years, voted to change the name to “Fenton W. Chester Arena.” In 2016, a new logo and color scheme was approved for the facility to emphasize the facility’s four season use.
Since its opening many improvements have been made. Fenton Chester Arena has expanded its snack bar, added locker rooms, improved energy efficiency with new lighting and water softening equipment, and added two dehumidifiers. Visual improvements include new bleachers, boards and glass, flooring and bathroom stalls. The purchase of artificial turf occurred in 2015 to help develop a new use for the facility during the spring and summer months. In 2015 and 2017 the facility rebuilt its two compressors providing the facility with new systems to keep the ice frozen during unseasonably warm weather. Small improvements such as new signage, water bottle fillers, new benches, complete painting of the facility, new light protectors and several other minor things have all occurred in the past two years.
In the fall of 2016, Lyndon Institute signed a five-year agreement to manage the local facility on behalf of the Town. Following the expiration of that agreement, a new operating agreement with the Town has been signed by Rescue Ice Hockey in the Northeast Kingdom (“RINK”), Inc. to reopen the Arena following the lost Covid season. RINK, Inc., local businesses and supporters, and countless volunteers are committed to keeping Fenton Chester Arena a viable community “hub” of activities for the patrons who come to enjoy the offerings at the arena. We look forward to you visiting our facility!