In an effort to stop skateboarders from further damaging benches, handrails and other public property, the City of San Jose plans to open another skateboard park this summer.
And this one won’t be like the city’s other two. The Stonegate and Plata Arroyo skate parks are shaped like bowls and empty swimming pools. The new Great Oaks skate park is designed as a “street-style” park, meaning its cement-covered ground will contain replicas of objects found in public places, such as stairwells and sidewalks.
“Cool,” said Jon Nunes, an employee of the South San Jose Skate Works store, when he heard of the plan. Bowl-shaped parks are “kind of dull,” he said.
San Jose intends to open a total of 10 skate parks as a part of the 20-year “Greenprint” plan to provide more meaningful activities for youths. A park is proposed for each city council district, and each park will provide a different skating experience.
“Skating is a fast-growing sport in America,” said Mary Beth Carter, associate landscape architect for the city’s Parks, Recreation and Neighborhood Services department.
Carter said she expects the park to provide another option for skaters who enjoy working on their stunts in public.
The new park, which costs about $400,000 to construct, is set to open in August, Carter said. The park is located at Guisti and Snow drives, near a teen center and a middle school.
The Great Oaks park represents an effort to show mutual respect. “We listen to the people, to what they have to say,” said Carter, explaining that San Jose skaters wanted a place to skate street-style. On the flip side, she added, “everyone should have respect for public property.”
People like Mick Johnson may enjoy the new park. On a recent afternoon, while skating in Plaza De Cesar Chavez in downtown San Jose, Johnson and his friends were stopped by police.
“Me and my friends were kicked out many times for vandalizing something,” he said, “and we were doing nothing but skating.”