Batesville, In. — Batesville Main Street and the City of Batesville invites community members and visitors to the first-ever Ice Skating Rink in downtown Batesville from 5 p.m. to 9 p.m. on Friday, February 15 and 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. on Saturday, February 16.
The first-of-its-kind festival is in partnership with Schmidt’s Bakery during their annual Cherry Thing-A-Ling’s sale that attracted more than 5,000 people to downtown Batesville in 2018.
The ice rink will be in the Village Green parking lot and is available for all ages and skates are provided. There is no cost to participate as Main Street will accept free-will donations. A junior skate (5 and under) is scheduled for 3-4 p.m. Saturday.
“The Cherry Thing-A-Ling celebration attracts huge numbers of people to downtown Batesville every year,” said Main Street promotions co-chairperson Amy Gutzwiller. “We wanted to do something to build on the popularity of the event and provide Batesville with some winter fun!”
The 60 by 80-foot synthetic ice rink was made possible by generous corporate sponsors. Those who contributed financially are the John A. Hillenbrand Foundation, William A. and Martha H. Hillenbrand Foundation, Enhanced Telecommunications, Global Atlantic, Bruns-Gutzwiller, Margaret Mary Health Foundation, Sharp Painting LLC, Transmark Logistics, The Waters of Batesville, The Garrett Group and Marti Fritsch Tracy of Lohmiller Real Estate.
There are several in-kind donations provided by Gillman Home Center, Harmeyer’s Market, Pro Prints, Water-Tek, McDonald’s, Assured Partners and many volunteers who are donating their time to make this a successful event.
“It is great to see our community come together to support such a great idea that will certainly help bring more people into our downtown area and into those businesses,” said Mayor Mike Bettice.
There are activities and contests for the entire family including Ice Sculpting Demonstration, Cherry Pit Spitting Contest, Cherry Guessing Contest and more! View the complete list on the attached brochure.
“Many of our downtown businesses will have special promotions and Main Street encourages you to visit and support our downtown stores and restaurants during the weekend,” said Main Street promotions co-chair Amy Hawkins.
In the case of inclement weather, the ice rink will be installed at the Liberty Park Pavilion. Follow Batesville Main Street on Facebook for updates and information leading up to the event.
There are many volunteer opportunities for individuals and organizations.
