Eagle River rink operator could get 10 more years after audit found 11 problems

The nonprofit that has run Eagle River's Harry J. McDonald Center since 1984 would keep the job for up to 10 more years under a contract the Anchorage Assembly takes up Nov. 4.

It comes after a 2025 city audit found 11 problems with how Fire Lake Arena Management Inc., or FLAMI, ran the city-owned center, home to an Olympic-size ice rink, a turf field and a walking track.

FLAMI paid $8,600 in year-end bonuses to full-time staff in 2024, a year it ran $90,000 over its wage budget and lost about $67,700, auditors found. It hadn't turned in audited financial statements for 2021 through 2024. And a former employee was under police investigation over alleged misuse of money, estimated at about $18,800.

By May, city parks staff told the Municipal Audit Committee that FLAMI was "up-to-date with all requirements" and had finished the missing audits, according to an update. A compliance chart dated the same day still listed the audits as in progress.

FLAMI submitted the only responsive proposal when the city sought an operator in April. The contract would pay up to $250,000 over five years, plus five optional one-year renewals at up to $50,000 each. The administration recommends approval.

In September, the Assembly voted 12-0 to bring in new operators for the city's Ben Boeke, Dempsey Anderson and Sullivan arenas.