Novi has abandoned plans to sell the Novi Ice Arena.

After months of debate over whether to sell the 75,000-square-foot facility, Mayor Justin Fischer said at the council's Wednesday, Aug. 12, 2026, discussion that he has dropped the idea, citing deed restrictions, legal hurdles and the near-impossibility of guaranteeing all current user groups could remain under private ownership.

"For the city to make the sale, there's just a bunch of hurdles, so I've come to the conclusion that it's not worth pursuing," Fischer said, according to C&G Newspapers.

Fischer had championed selling the arena as recently as January, when he estimated a sale could generate about $4 million. Councilman Dave Staudt said at the committee's Jan. 20 meeting he didn't think the city should be "in the ice arena business." But the Finance and Administration Committee's investigation, which included a tour of the facility in July, revealed obstacles that shifted the calculus.

Clearing the deed restrictions, amending the city's parks masterplan and ensuring user protections would each require five council votes. Fischer said the effort wasn't worth what the city would get in return.

Instead, he laid out a forward plan: sell naming rights, reserve funds for facility improvements and update contracts with all user groups. Fischer criticized the current branding, saying Suburban Arena Management's logo is more prominent on the arena's website than any city identification, and called on the city to "take an active ownership role."

Staudt backed the shift but tied his support to a capital improvement program millage headed to the November ballot. The 10-year renewal of up to 1 mill would generate roughly $5 million annually for capital projects and would not increase property taxes because it replaces an expiring millage approved by voters in August 2016. Staudt said the arena's locker rooms look "kind of run down" and called for formalizing relationships with school district users.

He warned, however, that if the millage fails, "we're going to be in a very difficult position" and he may revisit the sale question.

The arena, which opened in September 1998, draws about 700,000 visitors a year, according to rink manager Jeff Mitchell. It operates through an enterprise fund sustained by user fees rather than general tax dollars. The sale debate drew passionate opposition from hockey and figure skating families, some of whom invested roughly $10,000 in 2025 alone to renovate a Novi High School hockey locker room at the facility.

Wednesday's discussion did not include a formal vote. The November millage is the next concrete milestone for the arena's future.