The Richard J. Codey Arena at South Mountain (formerly the South Mountain Skating Arena) is an
ice hockey
Ice hockey (or simply hockey) is a team sport played on ice skates, usually on an ice skating rink with lines and markings specific to the sport. It belongs to a family of sports called hockey. In ice hockey, two opposing teams use ice h ...
and
ice skating
Ice skating is the self-propulsion and gliding of a person across an ice surface, using metal-bladed ice skates. People skate for various reasons, including recreation (fun), exercise, competitive sports, and commuting. Ice skating may be per ...
arena in
West Orange, New Jersey
West Orange is a suburban township in Essex County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. As of the 2020 United States Census, its population was 48,843, an increase of 2,636 (+5.7%) from the 46,207 counted in the 2010 Census. as part of the
South Mountain Recreation Complex. The arena is named for former
Governor of New Jersey
The governor of New Jersey is the head of government of New Jersey. The office of governor is an elected position with a four-year term. There is a two consecutive term term limit, with no limitation on non-consecutive terms. The official r ...
Richard Codey. The Codey Arena is owned and operated by the
Essex County Department of Park, Recreation, and Cultural Affairs.
History
South Mountain Skating Arena opened in 1958 with a single ice rink with arena seating surrounding the rink. A second outdoor rink was built temporarily and used each winter beginning in the mid-1970s. The second rink was permanently enclosed in 1983. During 2004 and 2005 the arena underwent major renovations that included a new state-of-the-art lobby for the arena including meeting rooms, a skylight, automatic doors, pro shop (now a glice training area), arcade, and concession stand. Another part of the renovation was a new set of dasher boards, Plexiglas, compression system, jumbotron screen, and seats for Rink 1, as well as a new dehumidifier for Rink 2; it was renamed the Codey Arena upon reopening. In 2017, management announced that Rink 1 would undergo renovation once again putting in new seats, new boards, and a new
jumbotron/
scoreboard
A scoreboard is a large board for publicly displaying the score in a game. Most levels of sport from high school and above use at least one scoreboard for keeping score, measuring time, and displaying statistics. Scoreboards in the past used ...
. In the fall of 2018, the arcade was replaced by vending machines. The arena has two
NHL
The National Hockey League (NHL; french: Ligue nationale de hockey—LNH, ) is a professional ice hockey league in North America comprising 32 teams—25 in the United States and 7 in Canada. It is considered to be the top ranked professional ...
-sized skating rinks. The main arena has a
seating capacity
Seating capacity is the number of people who can be seated in a specific space, in terms of both the physical space available, and limitations set by law. Seating capacity can be used in the description of anything ranging from an automobile that ...
of 2,500 and the second rink seats approximately 500.
Hockey
Many high school, college and semi-professional (NJ Rockets) ice hockey games have been played at the rink beginning in the 1960s. From 1986 until the opening of the
Prudential Center
Prudential Center is a multi-purpose indoor arena in the central business district of Newark, New Jersey. Opened in 2007, it is the home of the New Jersey Devils of the National Hockey League (NHL) and the men's basketball program of Seton Hal ...
(which includes a full-size practice rink) in 2007, the
New Jersey Devils used the arena as the team's practice facility. In November 2008 it became home to the
Jersey Rockhoppers of the
Eastern Professional Hockey League. The arena is also home to the New Jersey Daredevils, a special needs hockey team that has practices and home games at the arena since 2002. The Daredevils play in the (ASHA) American Special Hockey Association League. Since 2009, The Daredevils host an annual Halloween hockey tournament in October for all Special Hockey International Teams (including the Daredevils) called Frankenfest. The New Jersey Devils Youth Hockey club is also based at the arena with more than twenty teams from the beginners entry level to the highly competitive AAA USA Hockey Sanctioned level. The
Seton Hall University
Seton Hall University (SHU) is a Private university, private Catholic research university in South Orange, New Jersey. Founded in 1856 by then-Bishop James Roosevelt Bayley and named after his aunt, Saint Elizabeth Ann Seton, Seton Hall is the ...
and the
Seton Hall Preparatory School
Seton Hall Preparatory School, generally called Seton Hall Prep or "The Prep", is a Roman Catholic all boys' high school located in the suburban community of West Orange in Essex County, New Jersey, operating under the supervision of the Arch ...
men's hockey teams also compete at the arena.
Livingston High School hockey also plays at the arena. They are known as The Lancers.
Ice skating
The arena offers many classes at different levels from toddlers to adults. There are also public sessions available during weekdays and weekends.
Essex Skating Club
The Essex Skating Club (ESC) is the figure skating club at the arena. The club has more than 300 youth and adult members with winning records at national competitions. A number of coaches at ESC are
Worlds and Olympic medalists such as Kay Barsdell, Oleg Bliakhman, Ken Foster and
JoJo Starbuck
Alicia "JoJo" Starbuck (born February 14, 1951, Birmingham, Alabama), is an American figure skater. With partner Kenneth Shelley, she is a three-time United States pair skating champion (1970–72) and two-time Olympian (1968, 1972).
Early lif ...
. The
Synchroettes are youth
synchronized skating
Synchronized skating is an ice skating sport where between 8 to 16 skaters perform together as a team. They move as a flowing unit at high speed over the ice, while performing elements and footwork.
This complex sport originated in 1956 and was ...
teams with winning records including regional champions and the gold medal at the 2010 U.S. Synchronized Skating Championships. In 2012, the Junior-level team of Synchroettes was selected by the U.S. Figure Skating to be part of the Team USA for 2012–13 season to compete in Leon Lurje Trophy international competition in Sweden. The Essex Blades is an adult synchronized skating team which ranked 6th at the 2011 U.S. Synchronized Skating Championships. Bravo! is a Novice
Theatre on Ice
Ice Theatre (also known as Theatre on Ice, TOI, and Ballet on Ice) is a branch of figure skating that merges technical jumps and spins with unique choreography, ice dancing, pairs moves, synchronized skating, and theater to tell a story or act ...
team which ranked 4th at the 2011 US National Theatre on Ice Competition. In 2012, Bravo! was selected by US Figure Skating to be one of the two Novice teams to represent the United States at the 2013
Nations Cup in Spain.
Garden State Speedskating
The Garden State Speedskating is one of 70
speed skating
Speed skating is a competitive form of ice skating in which the competitors race each other in travelling a certain distance on skates. Types of speed skating are long track speed skating, short track speed skating, and marathon speed skatin ...
clubs and the only club in New Jersey sanctioned by US Speedskating. The Garden State Speedskating has two home rinks. The home rink at Richard J. Codey Arena offers Learn to Speed Skating program for all skating levels.
Other usage
Several skating shows have taken place on the ice over the decades. Olympian skaters Peggy Fleming, Dorothy Hamill and Janet Lynn performed here in the 1970s. The arena has been used in non-ice sport tournaments such as Essex County Tournament of high school
wrestling
Wrestling is a series of combat sports involving grappling-type techniques such as clinch fighting, throws and takedowns, joint locks, pins and other grappling holds. Wrestling techniques have been incorporated into martial arts, combat ...
, and other events such as graduation ceremonies. Concerts by nationally-renowned bands were held here in the 1970s. The arena is also a site of emergency shelters for the county in the time of natural disasters. Occasionally, a rink is rented out for private entities, for instance, using it as a filming location for a
Super Bowl commercial.
The arena was also home to the
New Jersey Gems
The New Jersey Gems was a franchise that played in the Women's Professional Basketball League (WBL), one of only three teams in the league to survive through all three seasons, from 1978–79 to 1980–81. The team made the league playoffs once, lo ...
of the
Women's Professional Basketball League
The Women's Professional Basketball League (abbreviated WBL) was a professional women's basketball league in the United States. The league played three seasons from the fall of 1978 to the spring of 1981. The league was the first professional w ...
during the Gem's third and final season of play in 1980–81.
Public transportation
New Jersey Transit
New Jersey Transit Corporation, branded as NJ Transit, and often shortened to NJT, is a state-owned public transportation system that serves the U.S. state of New Jersey, along with portions of New York State and Pennsylvania. It operates bu ...
bus
73 serves the arena,
Turtle Back Zoo, and the South Mountain recreational complex. There are two commuter bus lines from the arena to New York City,
Community Coach bus 77, and
OurBus
OurBus Inc. is is a broker for motor carriers of passengers, and arranges for the transportation of passengers. The company offers intercity and commuter bus routes serving cities in New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Delaware, Maryland, Virgini ...
Livingston/West Orange.
References
External links
RinkAtlas listing for Richard J. Codey ArenaNew Jersey Daredevils Official Website
{{NewYorksportsvenues
Sports venues in New Jersey
West Orange, New Jersey
Indoor arenas in New Jersey
Sports venues in Essex County, New Jersey
1958 establishments in New Jersey
Sports venues completed in 1958
Basketball venues in New Jersey
College ice hockey venues in the United States
Figure skating venues in the United States