Fountains at Gateway Opens Outdoor Skating Rink for Winterfest

By Matthew Northrup

Motlow Buzz Contributing Writer

MURFREESBORO, Tenn. – Fountains at Gateway opened Murfreesboro’s first outdoor skating rink at 1500 Medical Center Parkway on Nov. 19, giving children of all ages a place to have fun during

The new winter attraction is part of “Winterfest,” an annual festival featuring themed skate the winter months.nights, movie nights on the rink, Christmas caroling, and pictures with Santa. Lights and holiday decorations accent the central plaza of the office park. 

Photo by Matthew Northrup   

             “Our vision was to create an activity hub for evenings and weekends,” said Sherri Dasilva, event coordinator of Winterfest. “During the summer, we’ll have movies under the stars and concerts on the green. During the winter months, we wanted a family friendly activity that people could come out and enjoy together. Ice skating seemed to be the right thing to include.”

 Winterfest will continue through Jan. 5. Regular operating hours through Dec. 21 are 4-8 p.m. Monday-Friday, 10 a.m.-10 p.m. on Saturday, and 1-8 p.m. on Sunday. Holiday hours from Dec. 22-Jan. 5 are 11 a.m.-9 p.m. Monday-Thursday, 11 a.m.-10 p.m. on Friday, 10 a.m.-10 p.m. on Saturday, and 1-9 p.m. on Sunday. Admission is $15 for adults, $12 for children age 4-12, and free for children age 4 and under.

Photo by Matthew Northrup

Dasilva added that Winterfest will even have themed skate nights to celebrate the Predators. Individuals who wear hockey gear on those nights will receive $2 off to skate.

Fountain Gateway will have 10 movie nights on ice during December. They will include Disney’s “Frozen” on Dec. 9, National Lampoon’s “Christmas Vacation” on Dec. 12, Dr. Seuss’s “How the Grinch Stole Christmas” on Dec. 12, “Polar Express” on Dec. 21, “Elf” on Dec. 24, and “It’s a Wonderful Life on Dec. 28. A live concert featuring The Ball Brothers will occur at 4 p.m. on Dec. 2.

Photo by Matthew Northrup

 Individuals can receive more information about Winterfest activities on the festival’s Facebook page at www.fountainswinterfest.com.

With Fountains at Gateway being known for hosting events and activities, adding the ice skating rink could be a draw for surrounding businesses such as Board and Brush Creative Studios, and the new Soda Bar serving ice cream and unbaked cookie dough.

 The city of Murfreesboro approved the office park’s plan to create Winterfest attractions and activities, including the skating ring, without outside corporate sponsors.

“Everything developed very quickly,” said Dasilva. “We do have corporate sponsors for movies on ice and a concert we’ll be hosting on Dec. 2.”