They want to make ice skating great again.
President-elect Donald Trump’s real estate company is making a comeback bid to run Wollman Rink in Central Park, The Post has learned.
The Trump Organization ran the iconic ice skating rink for decades — until then-Mayor Bill de Blasio forced the firm out in a retaliatory move following the Jan. 6, 2021 riot at the US Capitol.
“We ran it beautifully for decades and we plan on doing so again,” Ron Lieberman, executive vice president of the Trump Org, told The Post Wednesday, just a week after the former president won back the White House.
The City Department of Parks and Recreation recently put out a request for proposals to run the rink for 20 years once the current contract expires Oct. 31, 2026.
“We are going to respond to the RFP (request for proposals). I am submitting a proposal. We ran Wollman rink flawlessly for decades,” Lieberman said.
“It makes so much sense for us to come back. No one is in a better position to run the rink than us,” he said. “It’s natural for us to step back in.”
The Trump Org stepped in and renovated Wollman Rink in the 1980s after bumbling and fumbling by city officials, and ran it for decades thereafter — one of the former and incoming president’s claims to fame.
After de Blasio forced the company out amid outrage over the Capitol riot, Wollman Park Partners — a not-for-profit joint venture between Harris Blitzer Sports & Entertainment, which owns the New Jersey Devils hockey team; Related Companies and Equinox — stepped in and has operated the rink since.
Lieberman said there aren’t conflicts that would prevent the Trump Org from bidding for the Wollman concession, given that it operated the rink before when Trump was president from 2017 to 2020.
The Parks Department agreed.
“Any entity may submit a proposal,” an agency spokesperson said when asked about the Trump Org’s coming bid.
Trump, 78, also appears to have a better relationship with current Mayor Eric Adams than with the previous administration. The Republican president-elect has claimed Adams was railroaded by the feds after federal prosecutors hit the mayor with bribery and corruption charges, which he denies.
State Republican Party chairman Ed Cox said it was wrong for the city to remove the Trump Org from operating the rink in the first place.
“They want after Trump for political reasons. It was pure retaliation,” Cox said of ousting the company from operating Wollman and Lasker rink in north Central Park, Harlem.
The reconstruction of Wollman Rink in the 1980s had been an embarrassing, multimillion-dollar boondoggle for then-Mayor Ed Koch.
But in the summer of 1986, Trump, whose office is near Central Park, jumped into the fray and offered to rebuild the rink in time for the fall with a new, smaller budget.
His contractors ended up completing the project below the $3 million price tag. Even Koch, who was feuding with Trump at the time, joked, “I am now renting him out to other cities.”
The reopening of the rink was a PR bonanza for Trump — and his contract with the city to run it lasted more than three decades.
The Trump Org still values its history with Wollman Rink, featuring it on its website.
“The Wollman Rink would be later known as one of the greatest comeback stories in Manhattan … The Wollman Rink, Lasker Rink and historic Central Park Carousel will remain a wonderful part of the history of the Trump Organization,” the company said.
“We are incredibly proud to have saved these beloved icons and have been the proud caretaker for many decades,” it added. “Our team ran a flawless operation that provided a memorable, safe and enjoyable experience every single day for New Yorkers and visitors from around the world. We are tremendously proud of the programs we have built and the legacy we leave behind. We hope that these properties will continue to thrive and be cherished.”
Wollman Park Partners caught some flak for raising adult rates for skating when it took over the concession, which it said was necessary to spruce up the rink.
The rink recently reopened for the new season.