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Skaters ready to bust moves
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| Ramping' up to a skate park Robert Ragaini/Hudson-Catskill Newspapers Workmen from American Ramp, based in Joplin, Missouri, begin assembling the various ramps, tabletops and rails for Hudson's new skateboard park Tuesday. Expected to take a couple days to complete, the park is located at the rear of the parking lot at Oakdale Lake in the city. |
By Jamie Larson
HUDSON—The new Hudson Youth Department skate park at the Oakdale Lake facility will be completed today, but officials continue to go back and forth on just how regulated the park should be to keep young skateboarders safe.
The skate park was constructed by the American Ramp Company from Joplin Missouri, and the company’s designers worked directly with children in the youth program to create the layout of the substantial equiptment. The young people were asked to give their input, and help choose the elements that would be included during an Internet conference.
The final cost of the whole instillation of the park, with paving and fencing, could near $100,000, with some funds coming from the city coffers and others coming from donations to the youth department. The wheels of the project were put in motion by the Common Council years ago when Warren Street business owners complained about kids damaging property and creating a hazard by skating in front of their shops. Youth Committee Chairwoman, Alderwoman Wanda Pertilla (D-2nd Ward) said she was glad this came to fruition for business owners and the kids, and stressed that the skaters are good kids and just needed a safe and fun place to skate.
As the ramps were hitting the ground Tuesday, regulation for keeping the youth safe were still up in the air. Youth Department staff have been going back and forth with the mayor’s office on how many safeguards need to be in place to protect the city from lawsuits, and the children from injury.
Skaters will be required to wear protective gear, including helmets and pads, and will not be allowed in the park when the gate on the four foot fence is locked. As of Tuesday, officials had not come to a complete consensus as to the hours of operation. At Monday night’s informal meeting of the Common Council there was discussion that a youth department employee must be present at Oakdale when the skate park is open, but this would limit use dramatically. Now it appears as though they are on the same page and as long as a department employee can lock and unlock the gate, skaters can hit the ramps during daylight hours.
“The only really difficult part is the wording of the technical part,” Youth Director Trudy Beicht said, “but this is a great thing for the kids and they’re really excited.”
Skaters will be required to have liability wavers signed by their parents and be issued a skate park pass which they must be able to present to department staff or police officer when they check in on the park. There is still ongoing discussion about whether the park should allow non-city residents or if they should pay a small fee to get their pass, or allow any young person in the Hudson School District access. The wavers ask that participants and parents acknowledge that there is a risk of serious injury, paralysis and even death, associated with skating the park.
Though there are still a number of kinks to work out, making some officials a little perturbed with the last minute planning, they want to get kids in the park soon. “We don’t want to reinvent the wheel here,” Mayor Richard Scalera said. “There will be some growing pains but it won’t take long until we have a smooth running operation.”
To contact Jamie Larson email Jlarson@registerstar.com.
The skate park was constructed by the American Ramp Company from Joplin Missouri, and the company’s designers worked directly with children in the youth program to create the layout of the substantial equiptment. The young people were asked to give their input, and help choose the elements that would be included during an Internet conference.
The final cost of the whole instillation of the park, with paving and fencing, could near $100,000, with some funds coming from the city coffers and others coming from donations to the youth department. The wheels of the project were put in motion by the Common Council years ago when Warren Street business owners complained about kids damaging property and creating a hazard by skating in front of their shops. Youth Committee Chairwoman, Alderwoman Wanda Pertilla (D-2nd Ward) said she was glad this came to fruition for business owners and the kids, and stressed that the skaters are good kids and just needed a safe and fun place to skate.
As the ramps were hitting the ground Tuesday, regulation for keeping the youth safe were still up in the air. Youth Department staff have been going back and forth with the mayor’s office on how many safeguards need to be in place to protect the city from lawsuits, and the children from injury.
Skaters will be required to wear protective gear, including helmets and pads, and will not be allowed in the park when the gate on the four foot fence is locked. As of Tuesday, officials had not come to a complete consensus as to the hours of operation. At Monday night’s informal meeting of the Common Council there was discussion that a youth department employee must be present at Oakdale when the skate park is open, but this would limit use dramatically. Now it appears as though they are on the same page and as long as a department employee can lock and unlock the gate, skaters can hit the ramps during daylight hours.
“The only really difficult part is the wording of the technical part,” Youth Director Trudy Beicht said, “but this is a great thing for the kids and they’re really excited.”
Skaters will be required to have liability wavers signed by their parents and be issued a skate park pass which they must be able to present to department staff or police officer when they check in on the park. There is still ongoing discussion about whether the park should allow non-city residents or if they should pay a small fee to get their pass, or allow any young person in the Hudson School District access. The wavers ask that participants and parents acknowledge that there is a risk of serious injury, paralysis and even death, associated with skating the park.
Though there are still a number of kinks to work out, making some officials a little perturbed with the last minute planning, they want to get kids in the park soon. “We don’t want to reinvent the wheel here,” Mayor Richard Scalera said. “There will be some growing pains but it won’t take long until we have a smooth running operation.”
To contact Jamie Larson email Jlarson@registerstar.com.
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