Watertown’s new ice arena will feature “PREMIER Rink”

February 20, 2024
Mike Tanner

WATERTOWN, S.D.–A busy agenda tonight for the Watertown City Council at their regularly scheduled meeting.

They’ll consider a contract for just under $90,000 with TSP Architects to facilitate the redesign, bidding and construction services for the former Wells Fargo Bank building downtown.

That building has long sat empty after the city bought it for $1.3 million, with the intention of renovating it into a new City Hall.

The council has been down this road before, but the prior renovation bid came in millions of dollars over estimates, and it was promptly rejected.

A lot of ice arena topics are on the agenda tonight. First up is consideration of a lease agreement with a junior hockey team would play its home games in the new Prairie Lakes Ice Arena.

The council will also formally accept, and recognize private donors of the arena who have made the project possible, namely Prairie Lakes Healthcare, PREMIER Bank and First PREMIER Bankcard, and Watertown Ford Chrysler/Bobcat, which combined, are donating $9 million toward the project cost. That’s about one-fourth of the $36.5 million total price tag.

In exchange for its $1 million donation, the main ice sheet in the arena will be known as the, “PREMIER Rink,” with their logo featured at center ice (pictured).

Watertown Ford Chrysler/Bobcat is making a $1 million donation that was used to purchase the arena’s Zamboni, as well as the development of a second ice sheet.

Prairie Lakes Healthcare is the lead donor, giving $4.5 million to get their name on the facility as part of a 35 year naming rights agreement.