Fieldhouse has new life as roller rink

FAIRFIELD — Maharishi School’s fieldhouse is having new life breathed into it thanks to some new attractions.

The building dates back to the Parsons College-era, and its years are starting to show. Maharishi School Head of School Richard Beall said the facility needs a new roof, which he expects to cost about $500,000. Maharishi School students use the building for their physical education classes, but Beall hopes it can become a multipurpose recreation center for the whole community, and it’s on its way to becoming that.

On Saturday, the venue hosted the second “pop-up” roller rink organized by Volition Skate Co., a roller skating company in Fairfield. Jen Kranz, who owns the business with Kate Vigmostad, said between 50-60 people showed up to skate on the gymnasium floor that night, not quite as many as the first pop-up roller rink held at the site on April 29.

“It was still a good turnout, and people had a lot of fun,” Kranz said. “I think we raised about $500.”

Fairfield resident Karla Steward brought her daughter, Alex Jo, to skate at the fieldhouse Saturday. She said her daughter loves to roller skate, and has traveled to Wellman to skate four times already this year.

“This is more convenient, and my daughter is loving it so much she bought her own skates yesterday,” Steward said. “She’s even looking for where she can skate outside.”

Steward said she likes the family-friendly skating events Volition Skate has hosted, and is looking forward to more of them.

“I can bring my kid, and she can bring her friends and they can hang out somewhere in town with something to do,” Steward said. “This is a good roller rink. I think Fairfield can have a roller rink. Burlington has one. Wellman has one. Oskaloosa has one. Why can’t we?”

Kranz and Vigmostad are fundraising to build a new roller rink in Fairfield, but in the meantime are converting a couple of spaces in town to temporary roller rinks: the Maharishi School fieldhouse and Fishback and Stephenson Cider House.

Volition Skate Co. gives a portion of its proceeds to the school to help with upkeep of the building. Kranz and Vigmostad have said they plan to host other pop-up roller rinks at the fieldhouse later this year, though no dates have been set.

Beall said he’s excited about the activity Volition Skate has brought to the fieldhouse, which is not the only new thing in the building. The school has set up a golf simulator in the building, where a person can hit a golf ball into a screen, which displays the distance and direction the ball would have traveled. Beall said the golf simulator came about after meeting with Michael Eisner and his son, Dev, a member of the Fairfield High School golf team.

“The three of us put our heads together to plan something fun for our community,” Beall said. “We’d like to set up specific hours when people can reserve the golf simulator for a certain period of time.”

The golf simulator was in action Saturday during the skating event, with Dev showing off the apparatus by whacking golf balls into the screen that reverberated throughout the fieldhouse.

The fieldhouse is used somewhat by Maharishi International University, which puts on an archery program there. It’s also been used for indoor soccer.

“My hope would be that we can have enough ongoing use of the building so we can justify having an attendant,” Beall said. “We know this building has been around awhile with Parsons. It has a beautiful hardwood floor, and right now it needs an infusion of tender, loving care and finances.”

Call Andy Hallman at 641-575-0135 or email him at andy.hallman@southeastiowaunion.com