The Queenstown Ice Arena is an ice sports and public skate centre, opened originally in 1966 as an outdoor ice rink it was later rebuilt as an indoor arena in 1996 and is located at Queenstown Gardens, next to the town of Queenstown, Otago, New Zealand. It is the current home venue of the Skycity Stampede in the New Zealand Ice Hockey League (NZIHL) and Wakatipu Wild in the New Zealand Women's Ice Hockey League (NZWIHL). Queenstown Ice Arena is the only ice rink in Queenstown and is one of only two in Otago, along with Dunedin Ice Stadium. History Outdoor rink The first artificial ice surface was laid down in 1966 in Queenstown Gardens. The rink was named the Gardens Outdoor Ice Rink and at its opening in 1966 it drew a crowd of over 2,000 people. The manager of the Gardens Outdoor Ice Rink was Eoin Buckley. The rink was popular with locals and visitors to the area. The Queenstown Ice Hockey Club (QIHC) and Queenstown Ice Skating Club (QISC) were formed and used the rink for local competition. Early ice hockey games between local rivals Queenstown Rangers and Arrowtown's Arrowtown Arrows drew large crowds that would sell out the venue. The outdoor rink's freezing plant came from an old freezing works and did not have automatic start up, making it difficult for the manager to maintain the ice sheet. The Gardens Outdoor Ice Rink closed in 1995 due to financial difficulties. Indoor arena In 1996, an investor group led by Christophe Huck and Firdaus Siddick planned, built and opened the indoor arena on the same site as the old outdoor rink for $4 million. The new arena was named the Queenstown Ice Arena. In 2010, the Graham family, hailing from Canada, purchased the arena and began an extensive program of renovations as per an agreement with the Queenstown Lakes District Council to spend $500,000 on renovations in the first five years in exchange for a lease till the year 2050. Since then, Dan and Ted Graham have been completing renovations in stages and as of 2019 had spent $2.6 million on the facility (figure including purchase price and upgrades). They first started with sealing the building. Then they purchased a dehumidifier to keep moisture levels down and consistent. In 2016, to ready the arena for the 50th anniversary of the opening of the original Gardens outdoor ice