It's time to get a skatepark built in Needham, MA this year.

Please give us a follow! facebook.com/NeedhamSkatepark/

Contact benkerrigan(at)gmail.com

Opening Statement:

Needham offers many opportunities for students to participate in traditional sports teams, clubs and bands. There are designated places for all of these activities. The main reason I am behind this skatepark project is to support skateboarders and other action sports enthusiasts of Needham.  I have a lot of familiarity with skateboarding communities in Boston Metro West and have a database of skateparks in the Commonwealth.  Needham skateboarders are being significantly underserved!

Skateparks are more than just a sports facility: skateparks are a community space that enables people who aren’t involved in mainstream sports to practice their craft safely...be it skateboarding, biking, scootering or longboarding. 

Community:

Skateparks today are very communal.  It's a shared activity that's something akin to pick-up basketball games on public courts.  Skateboarders want to be around people who do the same thing they do. The feeling of being around people who do the same thing you do is amazing, but often overlooked.  Frankly, many people seem to view skateboards as a “toy” for loners and outcasts.  At skateparks, people ask questions about tricks, then practice tricks together, and get to watch and learn from others.  This is not something that’s very well known outside of the skateboarding community: you see a kid pushing around having fun outside and you may not realize that he or she is actually learning something new about life from their peers...without scoreboards, coaches or cheerleaders. The feeling of mastering a new trick or skatepark element is indescribable. Skateboarding comes down to imagination and putting in the physical effort, time and discipline to accomplish the trick.

Driving through Needham after school is out, you'll see many students using scooters, skateboards, and BMX bikes for transportation and recreation.  In fact, with about 8,000 people under 18 (according to the 2010 census), it's estimated that are over 350 active skateboarders! Certainly, there are hundreds more when you consider college students and slightly older skateboarders.

(Sources: http://quickfacts.census.gov/qfd/states/25/2544140.html and http://publicskateparkguide.org/vision/who-are-skateboarders/) 

The important social aspect of a skatepark is keeping kids active and out of trouble. I believe there's a great need to get kids off the couch.  This is the town that started Needham Unplugged afterall and yet we see lots of zombie-eyed kids staring at smartphones, computers and televisions. This Needham Skatepark will be a place for the youth to be safe from busy streets, parking lots and places of business. 

I understand we have all have opinions and thoughts about skateboarding. People can be quick to make judgments about topics we do not know much about or may not even have the time to learn about.  Maintainstream media has not been particularly kind in their anti-social depiction of skateboarders.  I hope after reading this you will have a new perspective.

From,

Needham Skatepark Advocates

Questions? Contact: benkerrigan(at)gmail.com

Please give us a follow! facebook.com/NeedhamSkatepark/