Portland’s historic Lloyd Center ice rink closed permanently on Saturday after nearly seven decades of operation. Opened in 1960, the beloved community hub shut its doors alongside the rest of the shopping center as the property prepares for redevelopment.
When the Lloyd Center shopping mall first opened its doors in 1960, it boasted a unique feature: an ice rink. In the nearly seven decades since, that ice surface evolved from an outdoor rink into an enclosed fixture sheltered beneath a glass ceiling, anchoring itself deeply in the cultural life of Portland.
Generations of families experienced the rink as a holiday destination adorned with a giant Christmas tree, a campaign stop for Bobby Kennedy in 1968, and famously as the place where Tonya Harding took her first steps on ice in 1973. Even as traditional enclosed malls struggled nationwide, attendance at the Lloyd Center rink endured, supporting one of the highest enrollment rates in the nation for the Learn To Skate USA program.
Jerry and Tally Leonard Lead the Final Skaters on the Historic Ice
Thousands of visitors packed the nearly vacant mall on Saturday to say goodbye to a pair of local institutions: the shopping center itself and its iconic ice rink. Among the crowd were Tally and Jerry Leonard, who first skated at the Lloyd Center in 1967 and never stopped.
Their romance began after a skating coach told Jerry about a young woman in Portland who skated just like him. Jerry drove from Yakima to meet Tally, spending an entire day on the ice together before realizing he had found someone special. National Figure Skating Championships, married, and raised two sons while building their lives around the rink.
Since the late 1970s, the couple returned to the rink four days a week, with Jerry scheduling dental patients around their afternoon skating routine. For their final performance on Saturday evening, Jerry and Tally were the ones to glide for the final time to close the legendary venue before it shuttered permanently at 7 p.m.
A Community Haven Beyond Competitive Figure Skating
While purpose-built athletic complexes often focus strictly on hockey teams and competitive clubs on the suburban fringe, the mall rink placed the sport directly in the path of ordinary families. Its open visibility from three surrounding levels created an atmosphere unlike any standard sports arena.
Photo: KATU
“The environment is pretty special. Because people on the upper levels are watching, a regular skater can feel like they’re performing. And there’s a lot of public skaters, so a lot of people are taking their first strokes and glides on this ice. There are birthday parties, and it’s a community center in a big way.”
Photo: The Washington Post
Wendy May, skater
Coaches and community members noted that as retail storefronts emptied in recent years, the rink and its surrounding mall levels became an informal sanctuary for local residents. High school and college students utilized the third floor for study groups, while the first floor hosted chess and bridge clubs, mall walkers, Zine meet-ups, and trading card swaps on Saturdays.
Pacific Ice Academy co-director and coach Alec Schmitt described the venue as unequivocally, the most inclusive rink I’ve ever been a part of. Lydia Finch, co-director at the academy, started skating at the mall at four years old and later experienced a full-circle moment by returning to teach Learn To Skate classes after college.
Portland Loses Its City-Limits Rink as Redevelopment Looms
The closure leaves Portland without a single ice rink within city limits. Part of the location’s historic appeal was its central access near light rail lines, bus routes, and major highways, allowing a diverse range of participants to reach the ice without needing a car. According to US Figure Skating vice-president of membership Elise Preston, Lloyd Center operated the largest Learn To Skate USA program in Oregon, drawing nearly 800 participants last season.
LAST SKATE AT LLOYD: Portland couple who fell in love at Lloyd Center Ice Rink puts on final show
While skaters like the Leonards intend to find new places to practice, the permanent loss of the downtown rink marks the end of an accessible era for Pacific Northwest athletics and community life.
Lloyd Center Ice Rink hosts final curtain call before mall’s closure
