Another Citrus slice skates away

My favorite Roller Barn story would, of course, involve politics.

It was well after I had performed my Citrus County parental duty of having my daughter’s 7-year-old birthday party at the Roller Barn.
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I do not skate, so I was on parental watch duty. The late Hal Porter, longtime manager at the Roller Barn, saw me standing along the outer rink. I told him I’m not a skater.

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“Mr. Mike, we can fix that,” he said. I declined and my knees have never regretted that once.

That’s not the memory.

It was a few years later when I moved to my little cabin in Inverness, changing my voting location to the Roller Barn. I eagerly anticipated Election Day as this would be the best voting experience ever.

Imagine my disappointment to find no loud music, no disco ball, no DJ, and no cheap cheese pizza. Just voting booths. How…official.

My first election there was the Roller Barn’s last. Someone must have noticed that Charlie Dean, the former sheriff turned legislator, owns the Roller Barn, and it probably wasn’t a good idea to have folks vote in a place run by a politician.

But it’s a memory that has lived for decades. And it immediately came to mind on Thursday when I read the Citrus County Live post that the Roller Barn is closing at the end of this year. 

Here’s what co-owner Judy Dean wrote:

“After much thought and with a bittersweet heart, we want to share that the Roller Barn will be closing its doors.

“Since 1983, the Roller Barn has been more than a skating rink — it has been a place where families gathered, friendships blossomed, and memories rolled on for more than four decades.

“We are so grateful to have been part of your lives through birthdays, school outings, Friday night skates, and countless celebrations. Watching generations come through our doors has been one of the greatest joys of our family and staff.

“The last skate will take place on December 31, 2025. While it is hard to say goodbye, we take comfort in knowing the Roller Barn will forever be a part of Inverness’s story and the memories of everyone who skated here.

“On behalf of the Dean family, thank you for your loyalty, your laughter, and your support through the years.

“The Roller Barn has always been about community, and that is something that will never fade.”

And so, another iconic piece of Citrus County fades away. With it goes a little piece of our soul.

You want to know what concerns me the most about Citrus County? It’s not the growth, traffic, or lack of political cohesion. It’s that we’ll become like everyplace else.

Remember when we used to gripe about driving to Ocala or Brooksville for big box store shopping or a decent bite to eat? Now it’s all available at the corner of County Roads 491/486, where we’re squeezing in a commercial glut.

Look. I get it. Private property rights, change is inevitable, and all that. And we thank the Dean family for their decades of stewardship at the Roller Barn, truly one of a kind.

Every decent community has its goofy icons. When one leaves, the community is eager to see what comes next.

That’s why folks are so frustrated with the lack of development progress at the Crystal River Mall site. They went through the psychological trauma of losing a place that held such a strong community presence, only to see it leveled and, well, nothing much since then.

We’re growing and our county leaders seem easily swayed by shiny new things. To hear some folks talk, we’re building a bigger and better Citrus County. They may shed a tear for Roller Barn memories and then start thinking of the economic benefits of developing that site into something bright and flashy.

That’s how it works in an evolving society. We’re constantly replacing old with new.

So, here’s to the Roller Barn. A special place of memories for thousands of Citrus Countians, the young and younger. 

Roll through your Monday, friends.

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