For decades, before it closed in 2018, the iconic Lloyd’s Roller Rink was a hub for local roller-skating enthusiasts and a go-to for birthday parties, first dates and friend-group hangs — a place where memories were made.
Longtime local dance teacher and roller-skater Theresa Tucci has fond memories of Lloyd’s and saw how its closure affected the roller-skating community. “[Lloyd’s] was the last connecting point,” Tucci says.
So, Tucci teamed up with Kathleen “Roxy” Janzen, a founding member of Calgary Roller Derby and owner of the Nerd Roller Skates store, to get things rolling again.
The pair started Calgary Roller Skate in 2018, hosting pop-up roller rinks and roller-skating classes at school gyms and community centres around the city. Crowd-sourcing helped Tucci and Janzen buy their first fleet of used skates for the first pop-ups, while Matt Stayner, president of TimberTown Building Centre and owner of the Junior Varsity Volleyball Training Centre, allowed Calgary Roller Skate to use the volleyball faciliity for large pop-up roller rinks.
Eventually, Calgary Roller Skate’s pop-ups became popular enough to open House of Skate — a 19,000-square-foot indoor roller rink in the Alyth/Bonnybrook/Manchester district. Launched in February 2024, House of Skate has a premium maple skating floor and offers classes and open skating, as well as themed nights set to different music genres. Local artist Ken Hacke was commissioned to create the giant LED sculptures, called the “Agora Palms,” for the centre of the rink.
Getting the new facility up and running was truly a community effort. When unexpected construction costs put plans for the special maple floor in jeopardy, the team launched a crowd-funding campaign for patrons to pre-buy tickets to the rink. This, along with more help from Stayner and TimberTown, allowed House of Skate to proceed as planned.
Tucci saw how the campaign galvanized skaters and non-skaters, alike. “They really came out,” she says. “That floor is pretty special because it’s a symbol — it’s all because of Calgary.”
Now, as skaters whiz around under House of Skate’s colourful lights, there’s a place where new memories can be made.
1100 42 Ave. S.E., 587-288-3146, houseofskate.ca, @houseofskateyyc