Astoria Armory looks to build from skate nights

When the Astoria Armory reopened after the pandemic, volunteers and staff faced a daunting feat: How to reinstate the community center as a destination for people looking to gather.

“After COVID, we had to start over,” said Susan Hobson, president-elect of the Armory’s board. “We’re really proud of where we’ve come from.”

Armory

A disco ball is fitted to the end of a fire engine’s ladder so that it can be raised up in front of the Astoria Armory.

The Armory, built in the 1940s by local contractor John Helstrom, has housed USO celebrations, political rallies, sporting events, concerts and skate nights. In recent years, though, the focus has been on restoration and finding a path forward as a community resource.

“We just really concentrated on revamping skate night, because that was our place to start,” Hobson said. “Now we’re bringing in our community.”

The skate nights often bring in over a hundred participants for family-friendly fun on Fridays and Saturdays. But they also benefit the community in other ways. Hobson said they’ve started hosting open skate nights in collaboration with The Harbor to raise awareness for victims of domestic violence.

“On the community end of things, a lot of kids and families come through here,” she said. “And the beauty of the open skate against domestic abuse, for example, is that they have a safe place. I have had families from the very first time we held it, two years ago, that come religiously every Friday night and hang out.

“It’s really important, and you learn a lot, because you realize that if it doesn’t touch you, you don’t think about it. It’s amazing … We take care of our town, and all of a sudden, we make a difference in our little part of the world.”

In addition to a new sound system and a repainted and revamped lobby, bathrooms and skating rink, volunteers and employees at the Armory are working on lacing up new pairs of roller skates to ensure that everyone can participate.

Jeff Daly, who devoted much of his time, energy and money to the upgrades and new equipment — including 150 new pairs of skates — said it breaks his heart to see a child have to sit on the sidelines and wait for a pair of skates to become available. The skates he donated also come in a wider range of sizes, so nobody’s feet are too big or too small to skate.

For Daly, an entrepreneur, the renovation comes with a large dose of nostalgia.

“I was raised here, and as a kid, we used to roller skate here,” he said. “Every Sunday we’d come here. I heard my first rock-and-roll concerts here — Deep Purple, Buffalo Springfield.”

Daly is also pouring his heart and history into the building with a new room dedicated to children with sensory or behavioral issues who may get overstimulated in the fast-paced open skate environment.

Equipped with colorful beanbags and engaging sensory aids, the area will be dubbed “Molly’s Room,” after Daly’s late sister, who was institutionalized when the two were very young.

In 2004, Daly reunited with Molly after years of searching. In 2005, her story prompted Oregon lawmakers to write “Molly’s Bill,” making it easier for others to find loved ones who have been institutionalized.

“He just spent about 10 years with her before she passed away,” Hobson said. “And you think about those times and how people felt … in today’s world, she probably wouldn’t have been institutionalized. So Molly’s Room is named for a place where kids who need a little extra quiet can come and just be. This is just the start of that.”

A large window also allows people in Molly’s Room to look out at the skaters, so parents can take multiple children to the Armory and keep an eye on all of them if one or more need a calm, soothing space.

Kicking off the holiday season, Daly is also spearheading an Armory collaboration with the Astoria Fire Department’s 36th annual Holiday Food Drive. On Dec. 6, people are invited to a holiday skate party, with free admission for those who bring a nonperishable food item.

And on the first three Sundays in December, Astoria Sunday Market director Tamara Cameron is organizing a holiday market at the Armory with over 60 vendors.

“It’s very festive and very gift-oriented,” she said. “And we’ll have some carolers a couple of weekends, we’ll have the dulcimer player here. It’s a really fun, festive environment.”

Further responding to community needs, the Armory has opened its doors to pickleball. On Tuesday and Wednesday evenings and Saturday mornings, open play will be available to players for a small drop-in fee or seasonal membership.

A new mural is also planned, bringing life to the blank north exterior wall through Newport artist Casey McEneny.

Hobson said she and Daly have been brainstorming ideas to increase accessibility for the community, including a set time for wheelchair users and parents with strollers to roll around the large rink without worrying about running into skaters.

“Those are things that we’ve been thinking about as we get our momentum,” she said. “And we’ve been applying like crazy for grants … Just to have the awareness to know how important this place is and what the potential could be, to serve our community in more ways than just roller skates. That’s the goal.”