A new ice rink is set to come to TraffordCity. It will be called TraffordCity Ice Arena and will be one of the biggest venues in the country.

The state-of-the-art ice rink, will also convert into a multi-use event space, developers say.

It will be built next to the Chill Factore and iFLY, the three-acre development will be located on the former Soccer Dome site which was cleared by Peel Waters last year in preparation for future leisure developments. 

Peel says more details and images of the proposed venue will be released closer to the planning submission to Trafford council, which will also include plans for several varied and inclusive onsite food and drink offerings, including grab-and-go options, a ‘stylish’ family dining restaurant and a high-end sports bar. 

The ICITIES deal follows on from the recent announcement of Tartan Leisure being brought in by Peel Waters to deliver the first inland surf destination in the north of England which will also be located at TraffordCity. 

Peel says the new ice-leisure and events destination will ‘further enhance TraffordCity’s expanding portfolio of sport-based leisure and experience offerings, which already includes skiing, snowboarding, rock climbing, skydiving as well as being the home of Trafford Golf’. 

Meanwhile work on Therme Manchester, the UK’s first city-based wellbeing resort, is also set to start on site imminently. 

ICITIES director Nick Payne said: “This marks our first major project and our vision to develop best-in-class sports and leisure stadiums and arenas in the UK. We already enjoy a strong partnership with Planet Ice, and ice skating will be the cornerstone of many of our projects like this one at TraffordCity.

“This arena will be our showcase and we hope to attract other allied sports and entertainment operators to this project. Where we can, we would like to include facilities that educate and entertain children and the wider communities.

“Across the UK, there is a general lack of first-rate facilities for many event space operators, like virtual reality, esports, racket sports as well as screening and live entertainment. This project at TraffordCity, like many others we plan to develop, will address this need.

“We hope our development we will add to the community and be a significant addition to TraffordCity which is already a world class retail and leisure destination.” 

Peel Waters executive director James Whittaker added: “Alongside boosting the local and visitor economy and attracting investment into the area, we are committed to increasing jobs and opportunities for our local community.

“Through our long-term vision for TraffordCity, Peel has helped create 17,500 jobs within the destination to date with plans to increase this to 33,000 over the next 20 years. 

“This is great news to start off the year and 2024 promises to be another extremely exciting year for Peel Waters and TraffordCity.” 

Chief operating officer of Planet Ice Heath Rhodes said: “Peel Waters wants to attract the best leisure operators to TraffordCity, and we are keen to be working in partnership with them and ICITIES to develop a Planet Ice branded venue at this location.

“Situated next to the Chill Factore and with easy access to and from the M60 means our customers from Liverpool, Warrington and Manchester are all within close range.”

The estimated build time of the ice arena and event space will be approximately 12-15 months once the team starts on site.