Sussex County roller skaters will have to drive a little farther to show off their fancy footwork since the Milford Skating Center closed its doors.

For the Southern Delaware Rollergirls, that means driving an extra 30 minutes to the Dover Skating Center for practices and bouts.

“It's about the time not spent home with the family,” said Milton resident and roller girl Jamie Doerfler. “It turns into an extra hour being away, and that can really make a difference.”

“As much as Dover has been great to us, and is a bigger center and came to us with open arms, it's been a struggle,” she said. “We're all kind of struggling with the fact that we're the Southern Delaware Rollergirls and we're moving north. We had a whole season already booked, so when we found out via the internet the rink was closing, we were kind of in panic mode.”

After opening its doors nearly 35 years ago, the Milford Skating Center held its last public skate July 30. Owner Carmen Kemper was unable to reach an agreement to continue leasing the building, owned by Greater Milford Development LLC.

Kemper said in a press release a new lease offer from property manager Dennis Silicato would have quadrupled her rent, set at $42,000 per year for the last five years.

“With an increase of more than $136,000 the first year and 2 percent more each additional year, I thought I would try to reason with Mr. Silicato and offered a different rate increase based upon the use of the property as a skating center,” Kemper said. Silicato refused her proposal July 29, she said. “The business would not survive. With a very heavy heart, I had to decide the business must move on and find a better partnership.”

Kemper and skating rink supporters have started an online fundraiser to cover the cost of moving out of the building and finding a new center in the future. For information, go to www.plumfund.com/savemilfordskate.

“It's not going to be easy, but I am going to try and find the right location and right partners to allow the families to roll again,” Kemper said. “It is now closed, but will be forever in the hearts of the thousands of families we served.”