UMATILLA — The city of Umatilla on Friday and Saturday, Dec. 3-4, opened its ice skating rink to the public as part of the Umatilla Winter Festival.

Hanna Keister, Umatilla community development coordinator, said the original plan was to do something big in 2020, but coronavirus concerns created a delay. There was not a festival last year, so plans changed, she said. Otherwise, the city might have had a big celebration with another idea — live reindeers — as the center to the event.

This year, too, may have included reindeer, Keister said. Unfortunately, she added, the animals were in low supply and high demand elsewhere, so the festival had to go with another plan.

“We decided we’d get an ice-skating rink,” she said, “and the city manager, David Stockdale, ran with that idea, and thought we should just buy one because it would be a boon to the community.”

The rink is 2,900 square feet.

So far, she said, a lot of people have shown interest, and the city had tried it out before the festival. The Monday before Thanksgiving, staff members skated on the rink, Keister said.

She added the rink is available for rental during the week, $150 for two hours. On the weekends, individuals can use it for $3 per person.

She said she envisions the rink being a permanent fixture in a festival street, which could be built in the near future. For now, though, she said the rink will stay where it is December through February.

“We’ll see how it goes,” she said. She noted that there is “a lot of buzz around town” about the rink. On the first day of the festival, though, just prior to the start of the event, she admitted to being a little nervous whether people would attend.

Skaters took to the rink during the festival, which had nine vendors. Head Start also had a booth.

Keister said this was a special event for Umatilla, which has worked to revamp this section of the town.

“Sixth Street in the last couple of years is completely different,” Keister said.

Esmeralda Perches, development and recreation manager, also boasted of the town. She said new recreation activities will continue occurring alongside revitalization projects. A resident since 1995, Perches said she is excited about these projects. Improvements to local businesses, made possible by development revitalization grants, have made a difference, she said.

“We’ve funded about $225,000 this year to help them revitalize their buildings,” Perches said. She pointed to nearby businesses, including Java Junkies and The Bridge Bistro & Brews, and said, “We’re coming up.”

As a child, when she first arrived in Umatilla, it seemed like a ghost town then, she said. Having come from California, she said she wished Umatilla had more to offer. Now, she is pleased, because the town has more for its residents these days. She credits the city manager and others at the city for these developments.

“Umatilla’s absolutely on the rise,” Jacob Foutz, Umatilla senior planner, said. In this, he echoed Perches. He spoke of the “extraordinary growth” in both residential projects and business development.

“It’s an exciting time to be a part of Umatilla,” he said.

Keister said Umatilla will have even more to celebrate in the future, and she hopes people are paying attention.

“We have big dreams,” Keister said.