St. Moritz Ice Rink

St. Moritz Ice Rink

St. Moritz Ice Rink circa 1939–1944
Location	16 The Esplanade, St. Kilda, Victoria
Capacity	750
Opened	10 March 1939

The St. Moritz Ice Rink was a popular ice rink housed in a grand venue on The Esplanade, St. Kilda, Victoria, which operated between 1939–1981. As one of only two ice rinks in Melbourne in the 40s and 50s, it played a central role to the sport of ice hockey in Australia. Closed in 1982, it soon suffered a major fire and was then demolished, an event later seen as a major blow to the heritage of St Kilda.

The St. Moritz was first built as the Wattle Path Palais de Danse in 1922, one of the world's largest dance halls, designed by architects Beaver & Purnell. It was the venue for the first all-Australian dance championship, and featured some of the best dance bands of Australia and America, and closed during the great depression. In 1933, the building became a film studio, Efftee Studios, for Frank W. Thring, who made some half-dozen movies in the cavernous building before abandoning the project in 1937.

In 1939, businessman Henry Hans "Harry" Kleiner and his wife transformed the "Wattle Path" to an ice rink, and the St. Moritz was born.

The grand opening of the St. Moritz Ice-skating Palais (its original name) was on Friday 10 March, 1939. The arrival of celebrities to the opening were announced on the radio station 3XY and commentary about the interior and events were provided by Norman Banks of the radio station 3KZ. The cost of entry to the official opening of the St. Moritz Ice Rink was 5 shillings, which was inclusive of tax as well as skate hire for the night for over 2000 people that attended. The St. Kilda mayor, Councillor E. C. Mitty, formally opened the new ice skating rink.

The Kleiners were sole proprietors until 1953, when they sold the business to J. Gordon and T. Molony, both champion skaters.

The St. Moritz rink operated for over forty years, but in the 1970s trade declined in the face of competition from newer venues in the suburbs as well as roller skating and discotheques. In 1980 it was sold to developers Hudson Conway and trucking magnate Lindsay Fox (who had grown up in St Kilda and played ice hockey in the venue), but continued to operate, closing suddenly in early 1982, amid fears for its future. It was then nominated to the Historic Buildings Preservation Council, but a majority of City of St Kilda councillors voted to oppose this action and uphold a demolition permit already issued. The building infamously suffered a fire later that year, leaving only the facades, which were demolished soon after. The site remained vacant until about 1990, when a hotel was constructed. Two neon signs of skating girls were rescued from the facade by local identity Tom Ingram, one of which was re-erected within the cafe of the hotel, then covered over, rediscovered in 2005, and then donated to the St Kilda Historical Society. That hotel was mooted to be itself replaced by apartments in 2017.