Skatepark plan advances at Oakland Park
Friday gathering included groundbreaking and celebrating
Mike Peña and Marijayne Renny saw Pontiac move much closer to having a state-of-the-art skateboard park on Friday afternoon, during a groundbreaking at Oakland Park, not far from where the current skatepark stands.
They were joined by city, state and community leaders, skate enthusiasts, and Trevor Staples, The Skatepark Project’s built-to-play skatepark manager.
All those who spoke Friday expressed gratitude for the support of many individuals and groups, including the Ralph C. Wilson Jr. Foundation, Oakland County Commission, McLaren Health, and Girls’ Friendly Society.
“Skateparks are important because they build and sustain healthy communities,” said William Carrington, Pontiac city council’s president pro tem. “As a gathering place for dedicated, athletic youth, the skatepark will provide a forum for visitors young and old, beginners and skilled, to meet and share experiences.”
The good news is that construction won’t disrupt the existing skatepark — and the smaller, simpler attraction will remain and even get improved over time, Peña and Renny said.
“We didn’t get everything we wanted but that’s fine,” said Peña, who started the project when he learned the then-Tony Hawk Foundation (now known as The Skatepark Project) was offering community grants. “We still have the chance to make it on our own.”
Peña was meeting with Staples at a cafe in 2018 when Renny overheard the conversation and asked to get involved. From there, they worked to gain support, raise money and get the city’s backing.
They founded the Pontiac Skatepark Project raised $70,000 for seed money toward a $250,000 matching grant from “The Skatepark Project” to build a free public skatepark, $50,000 in matching grant money to fund project design costs from The Ralph C. Wilson Jr. Foundation Built to Play Program; $125,000 from the Oakland County Commission; and $55,000 from the city.
Renny is already looking forward to her next community improvement idea — she says she has “about 15 in mind already.” She works for the Detroit Roller Derby and said she learned to write grants as part of the skatepark project. At least one of her future projects will be working with Peña to continue improvements to the existing skatepark. Overall, they said, skateboarding is a family friendly activity that gets kids and adults outside in the fresh air and nature. They have organized multiple events since founding the Pontiac Skatepark Project.
The new skatepark will be finished late this summer, weather permitting. Learn more at https://www.facebook.com/pontiacskateparkproject.