Google Maps. Older one is on top, the most recent is on bottom above. Noticed they painted the entire place into Sand color and new addition.
All courtesy of A & R Skating Center. The last one really touched me. Two employees crying that they no longer works there and sad about the place closing for good. It was at the very end (noticed lights out on the right side?) I am sorry guys for your loss! I pray you got something new to work and you will make it through!
Holiday Skate World & Family Fun Center 710 Hill St, Lincoln, NE
Galaxy Skate World & Family Fun Center 710 Hill St, Lincoln, NE
A & R Skating Center 710 Hill St, Lincoln, NE
A & R Skating Center Cheney Ridge Plaza, 3800 Old Cheney Rd, Ste B, Lincoln, NE
There has been a series of rinks and even a relocation. Originally, it was called Holiday Skate World and Family Fun Center. It was opened on Friday May 1st, 1998. But a few months later, it became Galaxy Skate World and Family Fun Center. Name change I do not know why and it was under same owner, Randy Hamilton.
Actually, this rink was second for the Holiday Skate World and Family Fun Center company/Randy Hamilton. The other location was at 300 N 48th St, Lincoln, NE. See that profile in bold underlined.
It only lasted about five months before Randy changed the name to Galaxy. It was likely in the fall of 1998. Randy changed the other rink on the 48th Street location to Skate Zone as well.
But in 2001, Randy must have sold it to Andrea McNulty & Rhonda Teten. Those two ladies renamed it as A & R Skating Center noting that the two letters are the first letters of each of their first name- Andrea and Rhonda.
Looks like going good until the owner of the building wanted to terminate the lease and it became something else in 2005. So, the co-owners/sisters, Andrea and Rhonda closed the rink on Saturday October 29, 2005. They quickly looked for a new location. They sure did find on quickly which was the 3800 Old Cheney Road where the Cheney Ridge Plaza is located in the former Hy-Vee location. They reopened in March 17, 2006 in time for St. Patrick's Day celebration. I could not see well on Google Map because of the trees were blocking the view and the old Google Map goes far back as 2007 which is all moot. And blurred. Google had to redefined their technology. Now its all fixed nice in later years. Much sharper but harder to see because all trees right in the way from the street! I can tell beautiful area! Alot of Red Bricks Colonel style architect cross the street and the plaza has that 1970s Brown Brick with Light Sand trim on top on the front of all of their buildings. Yes, that famous burger chain restaurant franchise changed its look from Contemporary into Post Googie Cubism.
Unfortunately, for rink, they folded for good on Sunday August 16, 2009.
The Interior.
Original appearance for Holiday and Galaxy are unknown. There are no photo available. Not even for the original A&R rink.
One thing though, the facility at the old location was really high. It appeared to be two storys/stories high. They had other activities at that location including not just roller rink, but also laser tag games, bumper cars, arcade games, and children fun houses (indoor playgrounds). This sounded very much like what Skate Daze was like.
At the old location for A&R rink was a roller rink and a skateboard park indoors. With the new location, they had to climate skateboard park due to limit of size. Looks like A&R replaced all other entertainment for the skate park. Likely that was on second floor.
However, at the relocated site, it showed very bright new colors of 2000s-2020s. It was not neon but different hues of brightness. Shades of green, orange, yellow, and more. They have stars on the walls as well. And large too. But only the name of the rink has very graffiti quality to it. I saw the pictures on Facebook and it does not go with the rest of the rink with those stars and skate murals. It was not match-able. Compare this to say.. Skate Daze in Omaha, Nebraska that has very graffiti and very um.. metallic fun house to it. You can see the differences between this rink and theirs.
Unfortunately you will only find both of them online now that both are out of business.
The rink itself was poured concrete with White coat polyurethane on it. Only striking contrasts was the half-walls had exposed cinder-blocks without any paints on it! I would say 99 percent of rinks that had that were painted cinder-blocks. They could have painted those. Perhaps the cost prohibited them from able to paint it. Besides that, they closed up soon after. Just four and half years. Quite sad. From what I see, I love this rink because it had the beauty inside with those new hues of colors not set by any rinks in the 20th Century. This was truly refreshing that they choose the colors and the murals were very conservative. Not wild.
They had columns/posts to support. This is because the rink was built into a plaza. Not the old location which was likely free-standing. They truly reminded me of Empire Skates. The size of the rink was likely the same as Empire Skates Dewitt. Even down to the posts which is standard requirement for building Flat-Roofed plaza. The size of the entire place looks just a tiny bit smaller but basically same size rink for sure.
The Exterior.
The original location I have no idea what it was like. Google Map does not go further back. However, after they were forced out in mid-2000s, they had fitness centers and now a warehouse. However when the rink left, the facade was remodeled into Neo-Googie Architecture with curved roof canopy, funky design. Truly a Neo-Googie look. The current warehouse added their outbuilding extension so the former glory of original location is gone.
The Cheney Ridge Plaza is a shopping plaza and the rink was housed in Suite B. Likely that was on the side building, not the back building. I am guessing because I do not know where Hy-Vee used to be located in that plaza before they relocated their G-store to another location real close.
The building itself a plaza that has Flat roof, Brown Bricks posts and end walls and Sand colored canopy trim which reflex the 1970s look. Apparently still not dated in that plaza.
The Stats:
The 710 Hill St, Lincoln, NE Location --
Rink Size: 26,000 SF (other activities-11,500 SF) Floor: N/A Floor Layout: N/A
Building Size: 37,500 SF Built: N/A Demolished: Remodeled, became sports center then learning center.
Type of Building: Free Span Steel Concrete Building. Likely 2 storys/stories
Roof: Flat
Acres: N/A
The Cheney Ridge Plaza, 3800 Old Cheney Rd, Ste B, Lincoln, NE Location
Rink Size: N/A Floor: Poured concrete with White coat polyurethane Floor Layout: Standard.
Building Size: ~23,000 SF Built: N/A Demolished: Shopping plaza.
Type of Building: Columns Supported Flat roof shopping plaza.
Roof: Flat
Acres: N/A
Operated: N/A
Reason for Closure: N/A
Wanted: Information regarding photos of old version of rink. Both interior and exterior. Where exactly was this rink. Was it where the ACE Hardware is now located in that plaza? Sizes of both rinks (not the entire place, the rink itself).
Sources: A&R moved location, Closing for now (before relocation), Yelp, Lincoln Nite forum,
Lincoln-Journal Star, Sunday August 10, 1997 and Sunday August 24, 1997, Thursday November 6, 1997; Saturday April 25, 1998, Monday June 22, 1998, November 1998, Saturday October 29, 2005, and August 14, 2009 (last one).
© 2019-2020 Copyrighted by Dead-Rinks. All Rights Reserved.
Galaxy Skate World & Family Fun Center 710 Hill St, Lincoln, NE
A & R Skating Center 710 Hill St, Lincoln, NE
A & R Skating Center Cheney Ridge Plaza, 3800 Old Cheney Rd, Ste B, Lincoln, NE
There has been a series of rinks and even a relocation. Originally, it was called Holiday Skate World and Family Fun Center. It was opened on Friday May 1st, 1998. But a few months later, it became Galaxy Skate World and Family Fun Center. Name change I do not know why and it was under same owner, Randy Hamilton.
Actually, this rink was second for the Holiday Skate World and Family Fun Center company/Randy Hamilton. The other location was at 300 N 48th St, Lincoln, NE. See that profile in bold underlined.
It only lasted about five months before Randy changed the name to Galaxy. It was likely in the fall of 1998. Randy changed the other rink on the 48th Street location to Skate Zone as well.
But in 2001, Randy must have sold it to Andrea McNulty & Rhonda Teten. Those two ladies renamed it as A & R Skating Center noting that the two letters are the first letters of each of their first name- Andrea and Rhonda.
Looks like going good until the owner of the building wanted to terminate the lease and it became something else in 2005. So, the co-owners/sisters, Andrea and Rhonda closed the rink on Saturday October 29, 2005. They quickly looked for a new location. They sure did find on quickly which was the 3800 Old Cheney Road where the Cheney Ridge Plaza is located in the former Hy-Vee location. They reopened in March 17, 2006 in time for St. Patrick's Day celebration. I could not see well on Google Map because of the trees were blocking the view and the old Google Map goes far back as 2007 which is all moot. And blurred. Google had to redefined their technology. Now its all fixed nice in later years. Much sharper but harder to see because all trees right in the way from the street! I can tell beautiful area! Alot of Red Bricks Colonel style architect cross the street and the plaza has that 1970s Brown Brick with Light Sand trim on top on the front of all of their buildings. Yes, that famous burger chain restaurant franchise changed its look from Contemporary into Post Googie Cubism.
Unfortunately, for rink, they folded for good on Sunday August 16, 2009.
The Interior.
Original appearance for Holiday and Galaxy are unknown. There are no photo available. Not even for the original A&R rink.
One thing though, the facility at the old location was really high. It appeared to be two storys/stories high. They had other activities at that location including not just roller rink, but also laser tag games, bumper cars, arcade games, and children fun houses (indoor playgrounds). This sounded very much like what Skate Daze was like.
At the old location for A&R rink was a roller rink and a skateboard park indoors. With the new location, they had to climate skateboard park due to limit of size. Looks like A&R replaced all other entertainment for the skate park. Likely that was on second floor.
However, at the relocated site, it showed very bright new colors of 2000s-2020s. It was not neon but different hues of brightness. Shades of green, orange, yellow, and more. They have stars on the walls as well. And large too. But only the name of the rink has very graffiti quality to it. I saw the pictures on Facebook and it does not go with the rest of the rink with those stars and skate murals. It was not match-able. Compare this to say.. Skate Daze in Omaha, Nebraska that has very graffiti and very um.. metallic fun house to it. You can see the differences between this rink and theirs.
Unfortunately you will only find both of them online now that both are out of business.
The rink itself was poured concrete with White coat polyurethane on it. Only striking contrasts was the half-walls had exposed cinder-blocks without any paints on it! I would say 99 percent of rinks that had that were painted cinder-blocks. They could have painted those. Perhaps the cost prohibited them from able to paint it. Besides that, they closed up soon after. Just four and half years. Quite sad. From what I see, I love this rink because it had the beauty inside with those new hues of colors not set by any rinks in the 20th Century. This was truly refreshing that they choose the colors and the murals were very conservative. Not wild.
They had columns/posts to support. This is because the rink was built into a plaza. Not the old location which was likely free-standing. They truly reminded me of Empire Skates. The size of the rink was likely the same as Empire Skates Dewitt. Even down to the posts which is standard requirement for building Flat-Roofed plaza. The size of the entire place looks just a tiny bit smaller but basically same size rink for sure.
The Exterior.
The original location I have no idea what it was like. Google Map does not go further back. However, after they were forced out in mid-2000s, they had fitness centers and now a warehouse. However when the rink left, the facade was remodeled into Neo-Googie Architecture with curved roof canopy, funky design. Truly a Neo-Googie look. The current warehouse added their outbuilding extension so the former glory of original location is gone.
The Cheney Ridge Plaza is a shopping plaza and the rink was housed in Suite B. Likely that was on the side building, not the back building. I am guessing because I do not know where Hy-Vee used to be located in that plaza before they relocated their G-store to another location real close.
The building itself a plaza that has Flat roof, Brown Bricks posts and end walls and Sand colored canopy trim which reflex the 1970s look. Apparently still not dated in that plaza.
The Stats:
The 710 Hill St, Lincoln, NE Location --
Rink Size: 26,000 SF (other activities-11,500 SF) Floor: N/A Floor Layout: N/A
Building Size: 37,500 SF Built: N/A Demolished: Remodeled, became sports center then learning center.
Type of Building: Free Span Steel Concrete Building. Likely 2 storys/stories
Roof: Flat
Acres: N/A
The Cheney Ridge Plaza, 3800 Old Cheney Rd, Ste B, Lincoln, NE Location
Rink Size: N/A Floor: Poured concrete with White coat polyurethane Floor Layout: Standard.
Building Size: ~23,000 SF Built: N/A Demolished: Shopping plaza.
Type of Building: Columns Supported Flat roof shopping plaza.
Roof: Flat
Acres: N/A
Operated: N/A
Reason for Closure: N/A
Wanted: Information regarding photos of old version of rink. Both interior and exterior. Where exactly was this rink. Was it where the ACE Hardware is now located in that plaza? Sizes of both rinks (not the entire place, the rink itself).
Sources: A&R moved location, Closing for now (before relocation), Yelp, Lincoln Nite forum,
Lincoln-Journal Star, Sunday August 10, 1997 and Sunday August 24, 1997, Thursday November 6, 1997; Saturday April 25, 1998, Monday June 22, 1998, November 1998, Saturday October 29, 2005, and August 14, 2009 (last one).
© 2019-2020 Copyrighted by Dead-Rinks. All Rights Reserved.