'The great equalizer.' On Cincinnati's riverfront, a forgotten roller rink is reborn

On a Saturday night in June, if you were down at Cincinnati's Sawyer Point, you might have seen a crowd going in circles.

Some wore rainbow bell bottoms, or wrist bands in celebration of LGBTQ pride. Some were joined by their children or grandchildren. All of them had tied on skating shoes and were taking a spin around a once-abandoned roller rink.

"Two things make me feel absolutely liberated. And those two things are drag and roller-skating," said Jack Wilburn, who performs under the drag name Evelyn Everything. "It's really all about connectivity and I think that's what makes it so valuable."

The rink, sandwiched between Montgomery Inn Boathouse and the new pickleball courts, had largely been forgotten, decaying for decades.

But now, thanks to a coalition of activists, enthusiasts, and government officials, the rink is getting attention – and money ‒ it hasn't seen in years.

Cincinnati City Council in its budget passed in June approved $100,000 for repairs to the forty year old rink. That matched $100,000 that had been raised by rink lovers.

'Roller-skating is a really peaceful thing to do'

Shawn Bell Jr. from Colerain Township said has been skating since age five. "Some of my friends have passed from drug abuse, or lost family members to gang activity." That's exactly why Bell, 21, became active in Cincinnati's roller-skating community and the effort to restore the Sawyer Point rink, he said, volunteering for several hours on weekends to work on the rink.

"Roller-skating is a really peaceful thing to do," Bell said. "In a way, skating is just a way of keeping myself out of trouble."

Valerie Kreimer from Mason had roller-skated as a child. Kreimer, now 55, didn't start skating seriously again until the Covid-19 pandemic, when lockdown, paired with personal tragedy, left her searching for a lifeline.

"I lost my only daughter in 2021. She was 19," Kreimer said. Afterward, Kreimer wanted to "find something that I could do to ease my pain and help process the grief."

As it turns out, roller-skating is what she was looking for. The sport "helped me heal on a deeper level," Kreimer said.

"Roller-skating is the great equalizer," Kreimer said. "Different ethnicities, different religions, different sexual preferences, different capabilities," Kreimer proclaimed. "We are all one," Kreimer said, "everyone together, to celebrate our love of roller-skating."

At the center of this community is Morgan Rigaud, and Skate Downtown Cincy.

What is Skate Downtown Cincy?

Skate Downtown Cincy is a nonprofit "Raising awareness and support for downtown Cincinnati’s public skating facilities," led by Morgan Rigaud, who has used her position to push for renovations to Sawyer Point.

Rigaud, a 38-year-old art appraiser, said she has been working with Skate Downtown Cincy for three years on renovations.

Rigaud's advocacy for the roller rink marked her first foray into politics. Rigaud admitted "I had no clue what I was getting into," but her organization managed to raise $100,000 for refurbishments.

Rigaud and Skate Downtown Cincy have been organizing volunteer events, and even a "volunteer week," for people interested in helping remake the roller rink, bringing out around 50 roller-skaters.

The History of Sawyer Point

Early newspaper coverage showcased the rink's popularity, and foretold the structural issues that would later cause its abandonment.

"At 21,000 square feet, the rink at Bicentennial Commons is the largest synthetic outdoor skating surface in the nation," read a blurb from the January 11, 1989 edition of The Enquirer.

Only one year later, a copy of the Cincinnati Post mentioned failings in the rink's design, writing "cracks have developed that could catch skate blades."

The Recreation Commission ceased operating the outdoor rink, its skate rentals, concessions, and restrooms in 2005, with the facility suffering a long period of inactivity afterward. Eventually, the skating area itself was closed and used for storage.

Then the Covid-19 pandemic hit. Looking for outdoor activities, skaters returned to the rink, said Jennifer Spieser, executive director of the Cincinnati Parks Foundation, which is a partner and financial benefactor of Skate Downtown Cincy.

The foundation backs the improvements to the rink, she said. "There are a lot of problems in our city," Spieser said. "This is not just a fix for something, but this is a safe place, nurturing different people from all 52 neighborhoods," Spieser said.

Rigaud listed the changes the $100,000 will be used for, including re-surfacing the skating floor, and filling in potholes that "literally tripped people up." Now the rink can be made safe.

"I'm excited," Rigaud said. "I'm elated to have the city's support."

This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: Roller skating in Cincinnati: Sawyer Point rink gets city funding