The city of Utica Val Bialas recreation center has reopened after about seven years of being closed due to inconsistent weather. Families now have a place to go to on the weekends.

Starting this Wednesday, there will be winter activities for kids to enjoy during their winter break. Even if there isn’t enough snow on the ground like today, the organizer of the event. Hanka Grabovica, says she is happy there’s a place for children and families to gather during the winter.

“[We can] play with Legos. We can read different kinds of books,” Grabovica said. “We can play board games. We can draw. We can color. We can do many many different activities.” 

What You Need To Know

  • The city of Utica Val Bialas recreation center has re-opened after about seven years of being closed due to inconsistent weather

  • Families now have a place to come on the weekends

  • Starting Wednesday, it will re-open again for  winter activities for kids to enjoy during their winter break

After seven years without scheduled programming, Grabocvica helped get Val Bialas up and running again.

“I have two children, they’ve been skiing since they were three years old,” Grabovica said. “My husband and I have been skiing [for a] long time. We always got to Woods Valley, McCauley, Gore Mountain. Every time I pass [the] rec center, my kids are always like, ‘Mommy when can we ski here? When is this going to be open?’ So it’s always that reminder.” 

Grabovica inquired about how to get the ski slopes up and running again and volunteered to help so kids and families can enjoy winter activities in their own community.

“Where do we have in a small city like Utica something like this? A hill, where we can ski, snow tube, we can sled, we can do many different winter activities,” Grabovica said. 

The ski slopes, snowboarding and snow tubing have not reopened yet, but Grabovica says some things need to be done before they can officially reopen them.

“This is kind of just a start,” Grabovica said. “For next year, I’m not going to say much, but we have big plans. I’m sure it’s going to be much, much more fun here. We’re definitely looking to start on time skiing and snowboarding and snow tubing as soon as we have snow next year.”

As winter break starts Monday for most, the center will open again starting Wednesday with indoor and outdoor activities depending on the weather along with food and drinks.

"If there’s snow we can sled," she said.

Whether you like the cold outdoors or sitting by the fire drinking hot chocolate, there’s a little fun for everyone.

The recreation center will be open throughout the rest of winter Thursday through Sunday.