Skate park dream comes true for Gulfton teens
A group of Gulfton teens never imagined they would have a hand in bringing their favorite virtual reality to life — until they got the chance to design their perfect skate park.
“The Station” Skatepark at Burnett Bayland Park held its grand opening Saturday to celebrate the long-awaited use of the inground 17,500-square-foot space at 6000 Chimney Rock.
“The Gulfton youth who worked to make this dream come true show us all that dreams are not limited by age or by perceived obstacles,” Mayor Sylvester Turner told the crowd of skate enthusiasts and neighborhood spectators. “Dreams become reality when you are willing to work for them. I want to thank these youngsters for not giving up.”
It all began with a group of local teens who approached City Councilman Mike Laster in 2012. After first being taken aback, Laster put the teens in contact with Baker-Ripley for guidance.
“They came and said, ‘Are you a council member?’ and from there, the young folks envisioned it, designed it, helped plan it, helped put it together and helped raise money,” Laster said.
It took five years of planning and cost nearly $1.1 million — 10 times the original projection. The funding came from the Parks Consolidated Construction Fund, Laster’s council district service funds, the Parks and Recreation Dedication Fund, Neighborhood Centers Inc. and a Tony Hawk Foundation Skatepark Grant.
The teens spent months researching and working alongside BakerRipley to develop a concept for the park’s design that they considered their dream skateboard park.
Baker-Ripley brought in different park designs for the group to draw from as well. The young people then chose the specific parts they liked from each model and put them together for one park, making sure it flowed well.
Juan Dunn, 18, and Deandre Daniels, 21, said the design was largely inspired by their favorite video game, “Skate 3.”
“We used the game to create sample skateboard parks to kind of see how the flow would be,” Dunn said.
The park includes various skating obstacles, including a bowl, upper decks, grind ledges, stairs and handrails, flat bars and various banks. All were built to exact measurements to ensure safety, organizers said.
After four years of planning, construction began in December. It took only two months, which put the project three months ahead of schedule and left neighborhood kids eager to skate.
“It was a lot of effort, trying to keep the kids out of there — we had a little war going on there for a second — because when you’re doing a project like this, people get hesitant,” said Israel Delgado, field supervisor for P2MG, the general contractor. “They’re trying to get in there to do their thing, but we have to deliver it properly.”
At the opening, skateboarders filed through the gates of Burnett Bayland Park in droves. The young crowd waited to hit the concrete around the park’s rapidly-filling bowl.
Skateboards in hand, Dunn and Daniels bumped fists with friends entering the park and surveyed the dream they’d made a reality.
When asked about the park’s unusual name, Daniels smiled.
“The abandoned gas station where we all grew up skating, where we all met, we called it ‘The Station.’ Every day after school, we’d go meet up at The Station. And now we have this.”
He shook his head in disbelief and said, “It’s amazing.”