Published Tuesday, July 07, 2009 6:05 AM
City asks skaters for ideas on park
By ERIKA JARAMILLO
erika.jaramillo@theeagle.com
The College Station City Council is seeking input from skaters on the design of a new skate park that is to be built at the Southwood Athletic Complex on Rock Prairie Road.
The city will host a meeting at 7 p.m. Monday at the Teen Center at Southwood Athletic Park to get the public's feedback.
Members of the park's design team, Conroe-based Bleyl & Associates, and the organization's skate partner, Grind Line Inc., will be at the meeting to take suggestions on what features residents think the park should have, such as the number of ramps and benches and the type of flooring.
Edward McDonald, the graduate engineer for the capital projects department, said he urges the community to offer ideas about everything, including the level of complexity of the skate park.
"We're asking the skateboarding community -- doesn't matter if they are in their 30s or teens -- to get together and see what kind of features they want -- whether they want it to be for beginner, intermediate or advance skaters, or for a combination," McDonald said.
Voters approved $920,000 for the project as part of a bond package. A little more than $1,400 has been spent so far, McDonald said.
Though McDonald said there is no definite timeline for construction, he said he hopes the input from the meeting will speed up the park's development.
"A small project such as this should take about nine to 12 months, depending on how much feedback we get," he said.
Jason Downs, 35, has been a skateboarder for about
22 years. His three children, ranging from ages 3 and 9, are skateboarders also.
Downs said he has attended the skate park's advisory board meetings since the very beginning and is pleased that the project is finally on its way. He said he thinks the park should have an overall "street atmosphere" with stairs, rails and concrete bowls designed for all levels of skateboarders.
"I think this community is in dire need of this park," he said, " because for this demographic, skating is not just a sport, it's an art form that allows for self-expression."
In addition to Monday's meeting, the Skate Parks and Recreation advisory board will hold another public hearing meeting the following day, July 14, at 7 p.m. at the College Station Conference Center.
Comments
[comment]
14 comment(s) found!
Posted by:
On:
Thursday, July 09, 2009 5:47 PM
Comment Title:
Whamster, you mean skate park?
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Posted by:
On:
Thursday, July 09, 2009 5:45 PM
Comment Title: $920,000
That is a lot of money. How many skate boarders are they in this town so we can get an idea of the cost per user or better yet cost per family!
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Posted by:
whamster On:
Thursday, July 09, 2009 5:27 PM
Comment Title: RE: Yeah Beau
The irony here is that California is frickin bankrupt!. Read more national news and you'll know that you DON'T want California's economic state of affairs! Still like the idea of a state park :)
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Posted by:
On:
Thursday, July 09, 2009 3:02 PM
Comment Title: Yeah Beau
We need to be in the same state (no pun intended) your state is economically, spend tax money on skate board parks because such a large group of people are into it.
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Posted by:
Beau Davis On:
Thursday, July 09, 2009 11:04 AM
Comment Title: Protection
Listen folks; Skate parks have been run nationwide for decades and safely for that matter. There are state laws that protect facilitators of skate parks. There is only one documented lawsuit that has been successful in the whole nation. Skate Parks are not as bad as you think. It’s better to have skaters in one location rather than around town skating private property that is not protected under state law. I run a successful and safe skate park in California, I’m speaking from experience. I know College Station and its excellent Recreation department will run a skate park effectively and safely!
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Posted by:
On:
Thursday, July 09, 2009 8:21 AM
Comment Title: City buget $1M short
More taxes or skate board arena?
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Posted by:
On:
Wednesday, July 08, 2009 2:16 PM
Comment Title:
Require proof of hospitalization insurance before allowing kids to use facility!!!
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Posted by:
On:
Wednesday, July 08, 2009 12:17 AM
Comment Title:
Anyone ever watch the tv show "Jack Ass". Tell me kids won't try the stunts they do and make sure your hospitalization insurance is paid for the month. You're going to need it.
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Posted by:
Witherspoon.... On:
Tuesday, July 07, 2009 9:30 PM
Comment Title: all for the skaters....
This should be great for the kids n grown ups....keeps kids busy n out of trouble...n for the comments bout safety n injuries... skaters know the risk of skating...stop wit all the negative comments.. be happy there's a skate comin 2 tha brazos valley...
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Posted by:
On:
Tuesday, July 07, 2009 6:20 PM
Comment Title: No Bikes!!!!
and no razors!
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Posted by:
On:
Tuesday, July 07, 2009 5:29 PM
Comment Title: Yet!!!
We as Americans will sit our kids in front of the t.v. and give'em some cheetos.Skatboarding has less injuries per particapant than Football,Baseball and Basketball.So quit assuming things and promoting negativity!
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Posted by:
GetReal On:
Tuesday, July 07, 2009 3:50 PM
Comment Title: dangerous?
Cars kill more people than anything else in the USA. How can the city design and build streets knowing people will and do die on them? Get a grip.
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Posted by:
On:
Tuesday, July 07, 2009 8:17 AM
Comment Title: Design?
How can the city design something that is inherently dangerous and permit children to play on it. They take diving boards (which can be designed safely) for safety concerns and then decide to build a skateboard park. I am missing the logic in this.
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Posted by:
On:
Tuesday, July 07, 2009 8:15 AM
Comment Title:
And how much is in the budget for liability insurance. Remember minors nor their parents can sign away rights to sue! Good luck on this one.
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