TacomaSkateparks.org - Update
Our good Friend Peter Whitley at TacomaSkateparks.org sent in an update on the progress of their efforts in Tacoma.
Peter:
“I’m a little slow on the take. Better late than ever, I suppose. As one of the early activists within TacomaSkateparks.org, I’ve seen lots of shift in the way our community leaders have considered skateboarding and skateboarders. It’s a very exciting time.
Three years ago Tacoma City Council and the BIA, a group of downtown merchants and business stake-holders, were pushing for a downtown-wide skateboarding ban. Members of the skateboarding community had been meeting with Councilman Bill Evans at the time to discuss the best way to negotiate the pressure. A second group of skaters had formed separately to explore ways to develop more sanctioned skateboarding terrain in Tacoma. The two groups of skate activists naturally joined forces.
The ban was negotiated into nothingness after a thorough site assessment of the troubled spots. Techniques were suggested on how to mitigate the activity, prevent the damage, or reduce the nuisance.
In the end members of the BIA concluded that the BEST way to prevent unwanted skateboarding activity was to attract it in areas where it is appropriate. This is the fundamental wisdom behind all of the nation’s greatest downtown skateparks and a vision that we endorse 100%.
But where?
Every neighborhood of Tacoma should have a skatepark, as skaters live in every neighborhood of Tacoma. The skatepark system we’re advocating for designates a neighborhood skatepark to service those skaters too young to drive (or take public transit alone) and one larger regional skatepark that would provide a venue for larger events and gatherings. This system would be supported by small “skate spots” around downtown and other business districts (Proctor, 6th Avenue, S. 56th, etc.) to support some of the migratory aspects of street skating. Skate spots are inexpensive enough to redesign occasionally or drop into public park redevelopments as those opportunities arise.
Again, Tacoma MetroParks, the City Council, the Neighborhood Councils, and the BIA have been supportive of this vision. It’s an exciting time to be a skateboarder in Tacoma.”
Posted By: James
tacoma | | Aug 01, 2006
Comments
Thanks for the great presence, James! It’s flattering the amount of support Tacoma skateboarders have received from people we wouldn’t ordinarily expect to be interested.
From a liveability standpoint, skateboarders are (of course) a vital part of the urban experience. I believe that they are on the youngest side of any city’s creative class.
Consider what skateboarders are. A person, self-propelled, travels through a desolate downtown landscape on a Sunday afternoon. Every alley, loading dock, and service corridor presents an opportunity for a new physical challenge. This is a common perceptional filter—hell, it’s practically required—for today’s street skater to recreate.
Then there are downhill skaters and those who you often see cruising around the university neighborhoods on those long, sproingy boards. Built for speed and style, these devices offer a completely different experience.
Head out to one of the area’s deeper bowls, like the one found in Milton, and you’ll often see 40-somethings in enormous duct-taped pads covering faded tattoos doing all those tricks you saw in posters and on magazine covers in the ‘80s.
Really. It’s out there happening right now. It’s great. It’s part of our life in the city.
— Peter Whitley Aug 2, 07:54 PM #
