A legal battle is brewing between the popular Ice Castles in Midway and a similar winter attraction near Rigby, Idaho. The owners of the Ice Castles claim the Labelle Lake Ice Palace is infringing on their patent. “We are not infringing in any way whatsoever on what they are doing,” said James Youngstrom one of the owners of the Labelle Lake Ice Palace. The owners of Ice Castles say they have a system for building an Ice Castle. In short, they grow icicles, harvest them, then use a slush to connect them and grow the structure. The owner of the Ice Palace says he uses his own system of laying ice logs and spraying water over the top to build the structure.
“The day that we opened we received a cease and desist from Ice Castles” and Youngstrom says he isn’t stopping. He also says Ice Castles CEO has been trying to bully him into shutting his operation down. “He told me they have $500,000 to pursue the lawsuit. Photo: KSTU
