Kids, Parents, Officials and Businesspeople Agree on Need for a Skatepark

Date: 10/24/2000
By Howard Greninger
Tribune-Star

Riding up a ramp and soaring skyward, Patrick Edwards turns the handlebars on his chromium bicycle and extends his arms and legs, leaving the bike.

Seconds later, he's back on the ground.

"I like it mainly for the rush," said Edwards, 18. "Just being off the ground for just a few seconds in the air and then to pull out a trick and get admiration from your friends who like the sport themselves is fun."

Yet the fads of trick bikes, skateboards and in-line skates have not taken well with some business owners in downtown Terre Haute and on the campus of Indiana State University.

"It is a recurring problem and results in a significant amount of damage," said Joe Newport, associate director of ISU's Public Safety Department. "It results in concrete chips and dented and scratched hand rails and a lot of defacing of property."

Now, a group of parents and teen-agers are teaming up with the Terre Haute Park and Recreation Department in hopes of building an indoor skate park, with wooden ramps for bikes, skateboards and in-line skates.

Susan Dolle of Terre Haute helped spearhead the effort. She often takes her sons Jess, 13, and Chris, 17, to skate parks such as in Indianapolis or Anderson. In August, Dolle organized a meeting with city park officials.

Maralee Britton, superintendent of the Terre Haute Park and Recreation Department, recalls the meeting well. "I was told about a dozen people would be present, but when the meeting came there was 75 to 80 people there. Many of them teens," Britton said.

"From that, we have kids who want to step forward to design the facility and others who want to step forward to help raise funds," she said.

So far, those involved have raised about $1,300. On Nov. 4, kids and parents hope to have a "tag day," where they can solicit money in front of stores, which have given permission, to collect funds for the park. In addition, 300 T-shirts have been printed and are for sale for $10, Dolle said.

The shirts are available at the park department, 17 Harding Ave., and at Fat Bikes, 1119 Wabash Ave., and Gilles Cycling & Fitness, 4425 S. Seventh St.

Britton said costs could range from $75,000 for an outdoor park to $300,000 for an indoor park. An exact location for the park is still undetermined.

"The location is one of the key issues I see," Britton said. "I don't want to get in involved in a neighborhood dispute because we accidentally put it in a busy neighborhood and don't want it near an industrial area. I want to make sure the location is good for the kids and adults to visit as well as the surrounding community."

The facility ideally would be on a 1-acre site, Britton said.

The city's park department has more than 1,000 acres of property and some areas that "might be able to be utilized, but we're also looking at other properties around town. Maybe someone has a building or property that they would want to donate for this purpose," Britton said.

The park department would obtain a separate insurance policy, which would require helmets and protective pads as well as a waiver form signed by parents of those under 18, Britton said.

The insurer would require a staff member present in the facility.

Dolle said the sport is growing, mainly among the 12 to 20. "These are kids who probably don't do a whole lot of group activities or clubs or teams at school, this is what they do. This is what they are interested in," Dolle said. "Yet we don't have any place to do this here."

Keith Zinkovich, 28, is working on a design for the skate park. "I would say there are about 100 kids that do this, at least that I know about," he said. "There is nowhere to do what we like to do legally. To do our sport, you have to trespass or be on someone else's land and possibly get in trouble. This park would give us an alternative."

Edwards' bike, made of a chromium alloy, has special metal pegs on the right side that extend from the axles so it can withstand tricks such as "grinding" along the edge of a park bench, handrail or stone wall. He also has a smooth street tire on the back and a knobby tire on the front to aid in performing tricks.

Edwards said he would love to stay in Terre Haute, instead of having to always travel elsewhere to ride in a skate park. On Sunday, he traveled to Kankakee, Ill. to ride at a skate park at a YMCA. He has also traveled to outdoor parks with concrete ramps at Indianapolis and Anderson.

His older brother, Josh, 21, started trick jumps at 15. Now, Josh's 3-year-old son, Xavier, can do limited tricks. "He loves it. He jumps off our deck like nothing and still is using his training wheels," the father said.

Some downtown business owners support the idea of a skate park.

"I think it is a great idea to divert them away from the downtown neighborhood. There has been a big problem of them riding on rooftops, on private parking lots, in the parking garage and plaza," said Todd Nation, owner of BookNation and a member of Downtown Terre Haute Inc.

Nation said many business owners think the teens riding skateboards or bikes may also be drawing graffiti on downtown buildings.

Kenny Williams, president of Terre Haute Engraving, 600 Wabash Ave., has an agreement with teens who ride skateboards, skates or bikes in front of his downtown business.

"I have an arrangement with the kids that they don't do this before 5 p.m. and they clean up the trash. They just have no place to go. They have repaired a bench in front of our building once and will probably have to again," Williams said. "I think a skate park is a good idea."

Newport said liability is the biggest concern for not allowing the activity on the ISU campus.

"I think a skate park is much needed because these young people are not intending to cause damage, but it is a result of their activity," Newport said. "Yet it is also a liability problem. These people could get hurt on the campus and we have a responsibility to move them on to avoid injury."