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Benefits of a skatepark
Also: 30 Reasons for Skateparks
(Skaters for Public Skateparks website)
A professionally designed concrete skatepark will:
Provide a safe challenging place for skateboarding (and similar extreme sports), allowing participants to develop as athletes
Provide an alternative to team sports, to develop motor skills & balance in youth and the young-at-heart. Playgrounds are provided for younger children, but for older youth who dont participate in team sports, there is often nothing.
Attract visitors (skatepark enthusiasts & spectators) who enjoy skateboarding & similar extreme sports. When people visit they spend money!
According to Patti Ferguson, City Administrator for Armstrong, BC, "It actually becomes a draw for your community if you have a good skatepark. Skaters want to come and try it. Never underestimate the power of a teenager to sway his or her parents' travel plans!"
Make community more youth-friendly & give youth the message that they're accepted & valued members of the community, by giving them a place to call their own & a creative outlet to express themselves
Provide opportunity for healthy activity for youth, helping curb problems of inactivity & drug abuse (According to local Addiction Services, the most common reason given by youth for drug abuse is boredom.)
Provide opportunities to host jams (competitions), presenting skating in a format that people can understand & appreciate. Skateboarding is a great spectator sport!
Provide opportunities for hard to reach, non-joining youth to get involved in the community & foster creativity as each skater develops his own personal style and skills
According to veteran skateboarder Dan Hughes (2), "Skateboarding reaches these "at risk" youth, like no other sport. And it's cool too. But, people are out of touch with what is happening, and just want to get these annoying skateboarders out of their hair. All the while, kids are learning that as skaters they are second-class citizens. Yet, it's these same skateboarders who are learning a valuable work ethic. Because, believe me, if you don't work hard and commit to a trick, you won't land it. They also learn how to work independently, and also how to be creative, and develop their own style." (Email, March 2007)
Provide social opportunities by bringing different ages and social groups together, encouraging interaction and appreciation of each other; bring families together who enjoy skating as a family
Empower youth by involving them fully in the process of establishing the park, enabling them to work with community elders, learning how government works & how they can become more active citizens
Encourage youth to interact independently & develop socially, learning how to take turns & help each other learn new tricks
Mitigate street skating problems, protecting private & public property from damage & reducing police time required to follow up on complaints. For example, 75% of 24 communities surveyed by the City of Calgary in 1998, after the skatepark opened, reported a significant reduction in the skate problem.
Reduce pressure on hospitals as a result of reduced injuries from skating on rough surfaces and in traffic areas, i.e. street-skating. (According to Health Canada, only 5% of skateboarding injuries take place in skateparks.)
Provide a healthy release for pent-up aggression & frustration
Teach the importance of a positive attitude & belief in oneself. To progress in skateboarding, one must trust oneself & believe that they can do it!
Benefit StFX University because many university students would use the skatepark
Provide economic benefits.
According to the Antigonish RDA: "Community Access to a variety of recreational opportunities encourages business investment from outside the community, acts as a driver for immigration, and encourages resident retention (particularly among youth). Destination marketing and tourism development are closely tied with the number and quality of recreation activities developed and available."
A skatepark would fit well into Antigonish's established slogan of "Visit, Stay, Work and Play."
Thanks to Jim Barnum of Spectrum Skatepark Creations
for many of the above ideas.
Further reading:
Why are skateparks beneficial to communities? [Tony Hawk Foundation]
Skateparks and PTSD [Post Traumatic Stress Disorder]
on Skaters for Public Skateparks website; written by skater-stepfather Evan Knappenberger, an OIF (Operation Iraqi Freedom) 05-07 veteran with PTSD and depression; at the time of writing Evan was a student at Whatcom Community College in Bellingham, WA.
Many benefits to be had in skate park [Amherst Daily News, Aug 19, 2009]
updated Mar 20, 2010
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Sep 1, 2010
Upcoming events
Sept. board mtg TBA
Photos-New/Old/Older
Year in Review 07-08
Newsletter--Apr2007(pdf)
Clippings Jun03-Apr08
AHSA on facebook
Shopping
Nova Scotia sk8parks
AntigonishEventsCalendar
Halifax movie Roller Town looking for roller skaters / Roller Town facebook page
2010 Skate & Create / 2009 winner, etnies The Legend Of Boxton Square
HOLY ROLLER (2nd vid has music)
Where we are, July 2010
Rolling with the punches, The Casket, Jul 26, 2010
Town trying to find site?, Jul 21, 2010
Request for space for halfpipe turned down, June 21
A safe, fun summer, Chronicle Herald, July 19
A new skate park for sick old tricks -Globe and Mail
The Chronicles of Zander, June 12; Trailer & poster
Northside Youth Centre & Indoor Sk8park Grand Opening, Fredericton, NB; sponsor: East Side Board Supply
Playgound installation May 15, photos
Spryfield park open; vid
Everyone wins, vid about youth engagement produced by NS Dept of Community Services
Local: Big Air in Bedford
To Fix Bridge, Skateboard Mecca May Be Lost for Years, Brooklyn Bridge, NY
2010 AGM / President's report / new board
Pics, Jeff at Moncton sk8park
BMX enthusiasts out of winter hibernation
Dedication unrewarded, Letter to the editor of The Casket, Apr 14, 2010
Local talent - sk8 vids featuring Brennen Breen: couldn't breen / brennen breen this is antigonish / Halifax commons skateboardin / scooter vid featuring Ryan Rossong: Beaver Gone Wild
Danny Way Stepping Aside as His Creation Soars
Connecting to a Culture Using 4 Wheels / Related: 4Wheelwarpony
Bob Biniak of Z-Boys, Dies at 51
Skatepark planned for Amherst, NS / Many benefits to be had in skate park
Snowboarding gold medalist Shaun White on the value of skateboarding
For Tony Hawk, the Skateboard Is a Canvas
A stunt cyclist's Tour de Fence / Danny MacAskill on Youtube
Bridgewater sets aside land for skateboard park, Bridgewater Bulletin, Oct 20,09
AHSA volunteers at HUNGRY4CHANGE banquet, Aug 11 photos
2009 HG parade photos
1st Annual Arichat Skateboarding Competition - photos
New sk8parks 2008/10
Spryfield
Bridgewater (planned)
Chester
Saint John
Truro
Glace Bay
Fall River / slide show
Amherst (planned)
AnnapolisRoyal (planned)
Why a skatepark?
Site selection criteria
Sk8parks & playgrounds
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