
New York City is no stranger to roller rinks–from Roller Rock at the Rockaway Hotel and Winter Whirl roller rink at the Oculus to Flipper’s Roller Boogie Palace at Rockefeller Center and The Roller Wave traveling roller rink, but one thing they all have in common is that they’ve all been pop-ups, lasting only for a few months.
And now, sadly, NYC’s last true permanent roller rink has shut down.
After nearly 20 years RollerJam USA, NYC’s only year-round, indoor roller skating rink within the five boroughs has closed its doors for good, as reported by the New York Post.
Owner Joe Costa announced the upsetting news through an Instagram reel. Costa stated:
We made it through Hurricane Sandy, we made it through COVID, and we fought the good fight, but unfortunately we were not able to get our lease renewed. We are extremely upset about that and we did everything in our power to get that done. With saying that, I’d like to personally thank every single person…the community, you know who you are…that love skating.
Costa added to the Staten Island Advance that “he obviously did not want to leave or close his business, but he is choosing to stay positive during the last few weeks of operation.”
First opened in Staten Island in June 2007, the 17,000-square-foot rink felt like a nightclub with its flashing strobe lights, disco ball, and pumping sound system. Over the course of 17 years they’ve hosted more than 50,000 parties including fundraisers, school trips, camps, and more.
And though RollerJam USA is closed, Costa still has more on his plate. He told SI Advance, “I’m 60 years old, but still young at heart. They say I’m the comeback kid, let’s see if that holds true. I’m not sure what I’ll do, but whatever it is, I will give it my all.”
RollerJam USA closed on Saturday, May 4th. Those who still wanna roll around on skates can find some other NYC roller rinks here.