The Rink Sports Pavilion opens Friday, Oct. 9, at 20860 Centre Pointe Parkway. The opening-day skate sessions are free, but you have to register for them. Its first monthly calendar spreads skating across afternoons, weekday mornings and Sunday midday, and it saves the late-evening slot for a small number of nights at the highest price.
Look at the October schedule before you decide which session to book, especially if you've been waiting since the idea first surfaced. A 2024 report in The Signal traced it back to 2020, when residents wanted more ways to stay active outdoors.
A Long Gap Between Rinks
City Manager Ken Striplin has pointed back to the Saugus Rollerama, which once stood on the west side of Bouquet Canyon Road, as the last time the valley had a place to skate. He wrote that during the pandemic, groups like the Skating Mamas of SCV met at Central Park to skate. He describes The Rink as a "permanent home for roller skating in Santa Clarita." The new building is not on the Rollerama's old site. It sits inside the George A. Carvalho Sports Complex, on part of the parking lot in front of the outdoor basketball courts, next to the gymnasium.
The City Council held the groundbreaking in late August 2024, and the City says construction took more than two years. Two cost figures are on record. The Signal reported a $25 million project estimate in May 2024. A January 2025 report put the Phase II construction contract at $23.7 million. The two numbers cover different scopes, so they can't be compared directly.
The building has 25,000 square feet, with a 12,000-square-foot skating floor that converts into courts: three for pickleball, one for volleyball and one for basketball. There's spectator seating, a commercial kitchen, a DJ booth, dining areas and a disco ball. The rink's own site calls the floor hardwood and names the food concession The Wheel.
What October Actually Looks Like
Here is the published October calendar, grouped by week.
| Dates | What's on the floor |
|---|---|
| Fri. Oct. 9 | Grand opening, skating 5–7 and 8–10 p.m. |
| Sat. Oct. 10 | Skating 2–4, 5–7 and 8–10 p.m. |
| Sun. Oct. 11 | Skating noon–2 and 3–5 p.m. |
| Mon. Oct. 12 | Skating 10 a.m.–noon and 1–3 p.m. |
| Tue. Oct. 13 | Pickleball 5–9 p.m. |
| Wed. Oct. 14 | Skating 8–10 a.m. and 2–4 p.m., plus a midday session |
| Thu. Oct. 15 | Adults-only skating 7–9 p.m. |
| Fri.–Sat. Oct. 16–17 | Skating 2–4, 5–7 and 8–10 p.m. |
| Sun. Oct. 18 | Skating noon–2 and 3–5 p.m. |
| Mon.–Fri. Oct. 19–23 | Closed for a special event |
| Sat. Oct. 24 | Skating 2–4, 5–7 and 8–10 p.m. |
| Sun. Oct. 25 | Skating noon–2 and 3–5 p.m. |
| Mon.–Tue. Oct. 26–27 | Pickleball 5–9 p.m. |
| Wed. Oct. 28 | Skating 8–10 a.m. and 2–4 p.m., plus a midday session |
| Thu. Oct. 29 | Skating 7–9 p.m. |
| Fri. Oct. 30 | Halloween event, skating 2–4, 5–7 and 8–10 p.m. |
| Sat. Oct. 31 | Halloween event, afternoon sessions including 2–4 and 5–7 p.m. |
The calendar prints the Wednesday midday sessions and one Halloween session with a garbled time, so call the rink to confirm them before you plan around them.
Count the 8–10 p.m. sessions and you get six for the month: Oct. 9, 10, 16, 17, 24 and 30. Halloween night itself ends at 7. Thursday evenings run 7 to 9 p.m. on Oct. 15 and 29, and only the 15th is marked adults only.
The rink is closed for a whole week in the middle of the month, Oct. 19 through 23. That's the same week the City holds its 2026 State of the City inside The Rink, on Thursday, Oct. 22, at 3 p.m. Tickets are $45. So for a full week, the newest recreation building in the city works as an event hall instead of a rink.
Pricing Points the Same Direction
The fee sheet took effect July 1, 2026, and it backs up what the calendar shows.
- Non-primetime adult session: $12
- Non-primetime senior or youth session: $9
- Primetime session, all ages: $15
- Theme nights: $20
- Prepaid pass: $180 for 15 entries
- Skate rental: $5, or $10 for a Skate Mate
- Locker: $5
The two official fee pages don't agree on the $9 rate. The downloadable sheet says it's for seniors and youth. The rink's fee webpage calls the same $9 a "Sun/Th Rate." Check at the counter which one applies before you count on it for a family outing.
Primetime is the 8–10 p.m. weekend slot and the Thursday 7–9 p.m. session. An adult who skates then pays $15, which is $3 more than the 2–4 p.m. session on the same Saturday. Add a $5 rental and one adult's night out costs $20, the same as a theme night ticket before skates. The 15-entry pass works out to exactly $12 a visit, the same as the adult non-primetime rate. For an adult who skates in the afternoon, the pass saves no money. It only saves money if it can be used for primetime sessions, and the fee sheet doesn't say whether it can.
Theme nights are where the City has hinted at more evening programming. In an August preview reported by KHTS, the City's recreation director mentioned adult R&B, oldies and '80s nights, with no dates attached. None appear on the October calendar, so a reader hoping for one should watch November's.
Booking and Bringing Your Own Skates
Registration for every October session opens Monday, Oct. 5, at 10 a.m. through City.SC/TheRinkSkating. Both free opening-day sessions on Oct. 9 also require advance registration. The ribbon cutting itself is at 2 p.m. that day, with a skating demonstration afterward.
You can bring your own skates if they pass a staff check. The rink's posted rules:
- Staff inspect every pair of personal skates.
- Micro, mini, metal, glass and stone wheels are not allowed.
- Wheels must be big enough to roll over three quarters stacked together.
Outdoor skaters who've been rolling on park paths since 2020 should check their wheels before they show up.
The rink's FAQ still lists skate classes and fitness classes as "Coming Soon," even though the fee sheet already shows lessons at $20 each, skates not included. In 2024, City recreation staff said roller hockey and roller derby were not planned because of the wear they put on the floor and building. That was the plan at the time, and nothing in the October materials changes it.
Party bookings follow the same weekday-versus-weekend split. A party area during a public session costs $225 Monday through Thursday or $275 Friday through Sunday. Either price covers 15 guests, two hours of table time and skate rentals, and extra guests pay the regular session rate.
Where Pickleball Fits
Three pickleball courts are painted on the floor, but the October calendar sets aside only three dated drop-in evenings for them: Oct. 13, 26 and 27, each from 5 to 9 p.m.
Weekend daytime players have a separate new option. Starting Saturday, Oct. 3, eight pickleball overlay courts at Placerita Junior High are open for community use on Saturdays and Sundays from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m., when school activities aren't using them. You enter through the gate off Newhall Avenue. The City and the William S. Hart Union High School District split the $84,000 cost. Players bring their own paddles, balls and portable nets. A pickleball player in October can play weekday evenings at The Rink and weekend mornings at Placerita, and the two schedules don't overlap.
The Rest of the Carvalho Complex
The Rink joins a complex that already includes the Aquatic Center, the Santa Clarita Skate Park, Canine Country Dog Park, The Centre, the Santa Clarita Sports Complex and the Bike Park of Santa Clarita. A Sunday noon–2 session fits easily alongside a stop at the dog park or the bike park in the same lot.
If you'd rather eat somewhere other than The Wheel, KHTS's June 2026 restaurant roundup listed Guanatos Tacos at 21525 Soledad Canyon Road and La Michoacana Plus at 19351 Soledad Canyon Road. Both are short drives from Centre Pointe Parkway. That list is a few months old, so check hours before you go.
For more details, the City lists The Rink at (661) 250-3797 or [email protected]. You can also follow @TheRinkSportsPavilion on Instagram and Facebook.
Places like The Rink shape how a weekend in Santa Clarita actually goes. Our team tracks them closely because they matter to the families we work with. If you're weighing a move and want to know how close different parts of the valley are to the Carvalho complex and its new rink, Montemayor & Associates is happy to walk you through it. Contact Us.
