Community Skate Park Project
As noted in the Recreation Committee's Facilities Needs Assessment presented to the Select Board in Jan 2024, and the 2023 final Master Plan, the current state of the 6,200 sqft skatepark does not match the desired state. The obstacles are in very poor and dangerous conditions, leaving the park significantly under-outfitted and under-utilized for all styles and abilities of participants.
The current skatepark was created in 2005 by repurposing and installing ramps on an existing underutilized tennis court. However, no substantial upgrades or improvements were made to the equipment since the 2005 installation, gravely deteriorating the conditions of the skatepark. Online google reviews by residents and visitors from 2020 experienced “cracks in the jumps, ruff pavement, and lack of sturdiness”, and “ramps coming apart, the ground is pretty rough, and the transitions from the ramps to the ground are sketchy.”
Incorporating a robust public participation, outcomes reported in the Community Center Recreational Area final master plan, issued in January 2023 by Ray Dunetz Landscape Architecture, Inc, verified the severe conditions and non-inclusivity of the skatepark, as well as highlighting a strong community desire to prioritize redesigning the skatepark into an All-wheel plaza facility.
While the final details and scope of redesigning a skatepark was not included in the 2023 Master Plan, the Recreation Committee has committed to:
- Commitment 1.Redesigning the asset as an inclusive, all-wheel park;
- Commitment 2.Dedicate the necessary space to meet the level of service of the year-round population; expanding the footprint, at minimum, by 2,200 sqft into the equally neglected, but lesser used abutting softball field;
- Commitment 3.Consider new uses for the remaining portion of the softball field including categories not currently present on site but highly ranked in the Amenities Survey conducted for the 2023 Master Plan (Figure 1)