Skaters take to the surface of the city's artificial ice skating rink, located between the Lawrence Public Library and the neighboring parking garage, Friday, Nov. 28, 2014. The rink is about 60 feet by 80 feet and is made of synthetic ice, a plastic-like surface usable in all types of weather.

The city’s outdoor skating rink saw a sharp decline in attendance last winter, but Lawrence Parks and Recreation Department officials are hoping new programming will attract more skaters.

The rink’s debut season was the winter of 2014/2015, and its second season of operation only brought in about one-third of the visitors — and revenue — as the first. Parks and Recreation officials think the main culprit for low attendance was weather.

“If it’s too hot or too cold, people don’t want to skate,” said Mark Hecker, assistant director of Parks and Recreation. “We had warmer temperatures early last year, and then it got really cold in January.”

The rink made about three times as much revenue from skate rentals in its first season, which was the winter of 2014/2015. Specifically, the rink made about $26,000 in its debut season and only about $9,000 the following winter.

Hecker also said part of the drop off in visitors could be that the novelty of the rink boosted the attendance numbers for the first year.

“Some of it, obviously, is the first year it was new and exciting and everybody was giving it a try,” Hecker said. “That was part of the novelty of it the first year.”

The synthetic ice rink is made out of plastic pieces that fit together and is installed outside the Lawrence Public Library, 707 Vermont St. There is a $3-per-skater fee to use the rink, which includes the requisite skate rental. The surface originally drew some complaints from those used to skating on real ice, which offers more possibility for gliding.

The hope is that some additional attractions can draw more skaters when the rink opens for this winter season. Hecker said they hope event programming — such as birthday parties, candy cane hunts and other activities — will draw more people to the rink.

“(The idea is) we do some events and activities that try to bring people down there instead of just waiting for people to stop by,” Hecker said.

If successful, the idea could help the rink’s bottom line, which has been operating in the red.

The $9,000 in revenue from last winter means that the rink operated at more than a $14,000 loss. The expenses for the rink include about $13,000 in payroll for rink attendants and supplies, according to a city report. In addition, Hecker said labor and materials to set up the rink cost about $10,000. The setup requires the sod of the library lawn be removed and a wooden base to be installed before the synthetic ice is put in place.

Those operational expenses don’t include the cost of the synthetic surface itself, which the city purchased for about $80,000. The City Commission voted 3-2 to approve the $80,000 purchase of the artificial ice rink in September 2014.

Some Lawrence residents may also remember the recreation department’s more natural skating rink that is created by flooding the low-lying area in Buford M. Watson Park, 727 Kentucky St. Hecker said the recreation department hasn’t been able to create that rink for the past few years because of inconsistent winter weather.

“We basically have to have a couple weeks of below-zero temperatures consecutively to allow us to do that,” Hecker said. “…It can still be done, it’s just a matter of do we have the temperatures to allow the ice to freeze and stay there for a while.”

The library skating rink will open for its third season on Friday, and will be open for skating from 1-7:30 p.m. The rink will operate through Jan. 16, and a complete list of days and hours of operation can be found on the recreation department’s website.