COLUMBIA, SC — Columbia City Council voted unamimously Tuesday to keep downtown's portable ice rink open for two more weeks, though Jan. 27.

The rink, operated by Magic Ice USA Inc., has drawn nearly 13,000 paying customers since it opened in late November in the Main Street plaza in front of the Columbia Museum of Art, at Main and Hampton streets.

"It has been one of the best things to happen downtown recently," said a woman who brought her two elementary-age children with her to speak to council in favor of the rink.

Almost $120,000 was raised from ticket sales, a city official said.

This is the first time the city has allowed a portable ice rink downtown — not as a revenue raiser, but as a way to draw people to Main Street.