Report highlights criteria developed from meeting
in Rossland
Selecting a location for a skateboard park in Rossland is best done in baby steps, if a public process is any indication.
Around 20 residents attended a recent public meeting facilitated by former mayor Les Carter for the Rossland Skateboard Park Association, where open-ended questions formed the backdrop to a report now available for review.
Those gathered agreed that residents must consider noise, garbage and policing when selecting the ideal location.
“That was the general agreement not just by residents but by the people wanting to build the skate park. That they’re not building a skate park but a community,” Carter said.
Ross-Glen, where the bike skills park is currently located, was added back onto a list of potential sites, which also includes the preferred Emcon and Jubilee Park locations; Centennial Park, below and south of the soccer fields; and the western portion of the Centennial Trail parking lot.
Carter saw that residents previously felt left out of decision-making when city council passed a motion to place a potential skate park on the city’s Emcon lot, a move simply made as a means to seek out money after much legwork had already been completed on site locations.
With a background in public conflict resolution, he offered to help guide public consultations on the skate park issue.
Now the association is gathering information from other communities about their experiences with creating and maintaining skate parks and working with the city on developing site characteristics adopted at the meeting.
Technical aspects like drainage and soil will also be explored prior to a second meeting, at which times hopes are that the best location will be chosen.
“We’ll go through every site and look at it like it’s the only site,” Carter said. “We’ll look at all the information we have and narrow it down. I’m hoping one stands out but if there are two, we won’t be voting on it.”
After that meeting, participants will have an opportunity to suggest changes before he presents his findings to council, which will make the final decision.
To read his full report visit, http://www.skaterossland.com/, call Carter at 362-5677 for an emailed version or visit City Hall for a hard copy.