The founder of the planned Upstate Ice Plex in Mayfield has sent out 9,000 requests — one to every business in a 30-miles radius, seeking $250,000 to help get the $60 million facility onto the drawing board.

Timothy Rizzo sent the requests last week, saying that raising the $250,000 by March 31 will unlock $2.5 million in state matching grants and get the ice facility out of the idea stage and into the pre-construction stage.

“To really kick everything off, the $250,000 ramp is a prime goal,” Rizzo said Monday.

Rizzo first floated the idea of the 100-acre facility with ice rinks, a curling rink, pool, fitness center, restaurant and indoor soccer and lacrosse facilities to serve seven counties in 2017 and began seeking funding by 2021.

Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand requested $6 million for the facility then, but that funding did not materialize. She short-listed it for $1 million in funding in 2023, but again, the funding did not come.

“We’ll get short-listed again this year,” Rizzo said. “This is looking really good for us.”

The facility has had a range of cost estimates: $23.5 million when Rizzo announced the idea in 2022; $35 million later in 2022 and $46 million by the end of 2024.

It’s now $60 million, Rizzo said Monday. The facility would cost $50 to $55 million with the addition of a short-circuit swimming pool about six months ago. Another $10 million would be spent on infrastructure improvements to the project, including the cost to extend a natural gas line. Its plans now include a restaurant, daycare facility and space for emergency medical services.

“It’s grown because of an economic evaluation that it provides income,” Rizzo said. “It’s about the economic development driving force.”

Rizzo has said he has received little support from government agencies, but Fulton County Industrial Development Agency Executive Director Scott Henze said it’s difficult to build support when potential supporters don’t know the location.

“It was never really disclosed where the facility would be located,” Henze said Tuesday. “Location is somewhat key.”

The IDA also has other projects it must pursue, he said, including planning improvements to Tryon Technology Park, which won a $9 million grant to upgrade its infrastructure to help it support the construction of up to four new buildings. “We have a lot of projects and goals we’re undertaking,” Henze said.

So far, the IcePlex non-profit has raised about $70,000 from smaller donations, which Rizzo said has funded lobbying and engineering. “We’ve done everything the state has asked us to........

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