Kitchener begins planning for first skateboard park in city’s south end
Construction to start next summer
KITCHENER — Kitchener is beginning to plan for the design and construction of the first skate park in the city’s south end.
The skate park will be built in the Southwest Optimist Sports Fields, right at the corner of Homer Watson Boulevard and Pioneer Drive, said Karen Leasa, a landscape architect with the city.
City council recently approved a $50,000 contract with New Line Skateparks of Toronto to carry out public consultations and develop a design for the new skate park, which will be the fourth such park in the city.
The city has three skate parks: at the Aud, at McLennan Park and at Fischer Park, at the corner of Fischer-Hallman Road and Queen Street. The Fischer Park location is newest location, opening in 2015. It also has a portable skate park, the Skatium, which is rotated through various community centres throughout the summer.
“Skateboarding is growing in popularity,” Leasa said. “It’s the third largest participant sport in North America” for kids aged 10 to 19, she said, adding that each of the city’s existing skate parks is well used. Studies show Kitchener alone could have up to 15,000 potential skaters. Providing skateboard parks is also a way to encourage kids to get out and be physically active, she said.
Kitchener carried out a study in 2012 that looked at 19 potential sites for skate parks and identified Fischer Park and Doon Pioneer Park as the best locations for future skate parks. Locations were chosen closest to where most potential skateboarders live.
The new park is aimed at young skaters in the south end of the city, who are furthest from the existing skate parks. It is also close to transit, nearby stores and public washrooms at the Doon Pioneer Park Community Centre.
The exact design for the new skate park will be developed in consultation with the skaters who are likely to use it, Leasa said. As the city did when it developed the Fischer skate park, the consultant will hear from skateboarder at two workshops, tentatively scheduled for January and March. More than three dozen users took part in the Fischer Park workshops, Leasa said.
With $350,000 earmarked for the project, the new skate park will be slightly smaller, covering from 900 to 1,200 square metres, about twice the size of a basketball court. It will be a street course, with rails and other features, but won’t include a bowl, she said.
It will be in a very visible location, close to the intersection, Leasa said.
Visible locations attract members of the public to stop by and watch the users perform tricks, send a clear message that the city supports physical activity for young people, and reduces the risk of vandalism.
The skate park will be lit for evening use, and will feature some kind of public art as well.
Construction is expected to happen in summer 2018 with the park opening to users next fall.