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Palatine roller rink asking for help after storm warps floor

Water damage forces $85,000 in Orbit Skate Center repairs

The Orbit Skate Center in Palatine hopes to raise $85,000 to repair extensive water damage to the roller rink floor caused by a heavy rain last month.

Sandra Levin, owner of the iconic roller rink that's been a favorite in the Northwest suburbs since 1972, said she received a frantic phone call from her staff June 29 telling her rain water had sloshed underneath a pair of emergency exit doors and seeped onto the 19,000-square-foot wooden rink.

Leah Ramirez, the special events coordinator for Orbit, said the water forced the wood to expand. Because the concrete that surrounds the track doesn't give the wood anywhere to go, the boards warped.

The damage makes for bumpy riding on a large section of the track.

“You feel it when you skate,” Levin said. “Our skaters have been very understanding, They know the problem and they know we are getting it fixed.”

Replacing the entire custom-built maple wood surface would cost around $500,000. Instead of doing that, Orbit has hired a wood floor specialist from Tennessee to use riding sanders to scrape off the floor's polyurethane coating, as well as the very top of the wood, until it is flat again.

Levin said their insurance company denied their claim, so they have to pay the repairs out of pocket, which is estimated to cost about $85,000. That is an expensive proposition, one Levin says is made even more difficult coming on the heels of a $91,000 property tax bill this year.

“There is just no end to doing business in Cook County,” said Levin of the tax bill. “$91,000, that's a lot of kids coming to skate at $7 a pop.”

To help pay for the repairs, Levin started an online fundraiser at www.gofundme.com/orbitskatecenter, which received $5,655 of the $85,000 goal in its first 11 days. She said it has been touching to see donations coming from regular customers and from those who have moved away from the Chicago area but have fond memories of skating at Orbit.

The rink will host a “Save The Floor” fundraiser from 6 to 9 p.m. Thursday. Levin said admission and skate rental are free with donations and all of the proceeds go to the cost of the repairs.

Orbit will be closed the first week of August while the floor specialists make their repairs. Levin said she was able to obtain a loan to pay for the work now and will use the funds raised to repay the bank.

Orbit Skate Center is at 615 S. Consumers Ave., off Northwest Highway.

  Sandra Levin, owner of Orbit Skate Center in Palatine, shows the damage the iconic roller rink's floor sustained after water seeped in from under a pair of emergency exit doors. Bob Chwedyk/bchwedyk@dailyherald.com
  The cost to repair the damaged, warped surface at the Orbit Skate Center in Palatine is estimated at $85,000. Bob Chwedyk/bchwedyk@dailyherald.com
  Water damage caused the wood at the Orbit Skate Center in Palatine to expand, which led it to crack and buckle against the concrete surrounding it. Bob Chwedyk/bchwedyk@dailyherald.com
  The Orbit Skate Center in Palatine, a favorite for roller skates in the Northwest suburbs since 1972, is hoping to raise $85,000 to repair its wooden skating surface. Bob Chwedyk/bchwedyk@dailyherald.com
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