By Lauren Young

Staff Writer

The Village of Fayetteville has recently posted “No Ice Skating on Beard Pond” signs on the Beard Park site.

On Jan. 30, the village announced on its Facebook page that the signs posted on the site, located on Lincoln Avenue in Fayetteville, will remain for the rest of the season.

The post stated that, due to safety requirements and regulations by the state, the Village of Fayetteville is no longer allowed to maintain the ice on Beard Pond for the remainder of the season, and that “any use of the ice on the pond is solely at the risk of the individual.”

According to the post, an “incident” — referring to the Fayetteville DPW tractor that fell through the ice earlier last month — resulted in a need to “re-evaluate village policy and procedures,” which then must be approved by the state.

Despite inspection of the ice prior to using the tractor, a portion of the ice unexpectedly thinned out, causing the tractor to fall through two and a half feet of ice. While the tractor is still in repair, Mayor Mark Olson said the village is currently waiting to hear back from its insurance company regarding a completed policy before clearing the ice again. Until then, the village was ordered to refrain from clearing the pond.

In the meantime, the mayor encourages residents to follow posted signs by the pond and to use their best judgement when using the ice.