Skaters remember good times, younger days at Cheswick's Ches-A-Rena

Barbara Rapp brought her skates. But it was Terry Nickell who put his on.

"I wanted to be the last one to do it," Nickell said as he glided across the floor of the Ches-A-Rena in Cheswick.

Nickell, 59, of Cheswick, was among scores of people who came out Saturday to get a last look inside the arena before its looming demolition.

Walking past "enter at your own risk" signs and up a flight of steps at the back of the building, people came from near and far to see inside the building where they once had some of the best times of their lives, but had not been inside for a long, long time. They took pictures and videos and shared memories. One couple ducked into a corner and started "making out" for a picture, recreating a moment from their youth in the exact same spot.

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Rapp, 65, of O'Hara, lived in Blawnox when she came to the skating rink with her two sisters. The skates slung over her shoulder have been hers since she was 14 and her last name was Gaspari.

"Memories. Just such memories. Memories of us as children," she said.

"I spent a lot of my childhood here. A lot of my friends were here. Just a lot of fun," she said. "It's a real shame to see this thing go."

The arena will be torn down as part of Cheswick Plaza's redevelopment, which has already seen another building demolished and replaced, others renovated and the parking lot resurfaced.

Ron Johnson, 61, of Lower Burrell, started a week ago getting the arena cleaned up and ready for people to come in and say goodbye.

"It wasn't that bad, but we wanted to make it nice for them," he said. "I came here when I was a kid. Skating was a big thing when I was a kid. That's what we did."

After volunteer firefighters use it for training on Sunday, work on the demolition will begin inside in the next couple of weeks, developer Brian Clark said. No visible demolition will start until after April 11.

Clark said they're looking to see if the arena's hardwood floor can be salvaged.

The rental skates had been up for sale over at Goodwill; they're already all gone. Clark said they're working on some kind of commemorative memorabilia, proceeds from which would benefit recreation activities in Cheswick.

The disco ball, which was on the ground for people to take pictures with Saturday, is going to be placed inside the studio at Anytime Fitness, in the new building across the plaza. Co-owner Matt McCool said it will go up as soon as possible after a cleaning — and once he figures out the best way to suspend it.

Mike Mattern, 65, of Oakmont, managed the arena for 18 years, from 1970 to 1988, after starting there as a 13-year-old putting skates on people and working his way up.

He remembers birthday parties, weddings, roller hockey and more under the arched roof.

"A lot of good times. It was a wonderful place," he said, looking around at the crowd. "Evidently, a lot of people remember it."

Richard J. Blauser and his wife, Diane, were video chatting from inside the arena with their son, Michael, who was vacationing in Prague.

"It's been 30 years since I've been in here," said Richard Blauser, 67, of Penn Hills. "I was a teenager. My parents would have to drive us up and pick us up after."

His father, Richard F. Blauser, had helped plaster the ceiling, now falling apart.

"It seems no one skates any more," he said. "The millenials would rather sit in front of the computer. Things like this have gone by the wayside."

Elaine Plumbo, 53, of East Deer, remembers winning a trophy at the Ches-A-Rena — taking first place in couples skating, when she was 15. They skated to Donna Summer's "Dim All the Lights."

"That was the only trophy I ever won," she said. "I was here all the time. This is my life. It really was. Some of my best memories were here."

It's been five years since Plumbo has been on skates. "This makes me want to skate," she said. "It's time to skate again."

Jim Valenty, 51, who lives in Cleveland now, came with his camera and 13-year-old daughter, Hailey Pattison. He remembers eighth grade roller parties in Cheswick, when he lived in Morningside.

"I wanted to show her where I hung out in grade school," he said.

Jen DaConceicao, of Export, had her 8-month-old son, Theo, in a baby carrier in front of herself.

"This is his first and last trip to the skating rink," she said.

DaConceicao used to live in Penn Hills. She remembered hanging out with her friends, and them hiding from her mother in the snack bar. They came every Friday. "My mom had a minivan. She'd pack up the minivan with kids and drive us out here," she said.

After the arena is gone, there's no set plans yet for what will go there, Clark said. He's going to continue to market the site for a grocery store. "The public would like to have one here, and we would love to have one here," he said.

Brian C. Rittmeyer is a Tribune-Review staff writer. Reach him at 724-226-4701, brittmeyer@tribweb.com or on Twitter @BCRittmeyer.