Construction underway for Riverside skatepark
Site work is underway for the incoming skatepark beneath the Fuller Warren Bridge in Riverside.
This new skatepark was designed by California Skateparks. Construction began earlier this year and the site is currently being prepared to allow for underground utility work and drainage to begin.
The 1,000-foot-long skate plaza will be part of Artist Walk, a new park planned for the stretch of land between the I-95 on- and off-ramps at Park Street. According to the City of Jacksonville Parks, Recreation and Community Services Department, the skate plaza will feature “three rooms/spaces between the freeway pillars for various skill levels. The skate park entry area creates a ‘JAX’ stage that will front the synthetic turf lawn.”
Miki Vuckovich, director of strategic initiatives with California Skateparks, explained the space beneath the Fuller Warren Bridge and its restrictions helped formulate the final design for the park, which leans more toward a “street terrain” with its various elements versus the “bowl and transition” terrain.
“Because of the constraints that didn’t make a bowl a tenable solution there at that particular skatepark, the opportunity to really exploit the site’s characteristics to provide something that’s not just unique amongst Jacksonville skateparks, but really skateparks nationally,” he said.
Jacksonville has a rich history in the skateboard culture. It is home to Kona Skatepark, which, built in the 1970s, is known as the oldest skatepark in the world. According to its website, it holds the record of “longest-surviving, privately owned skatepark” in the “Guinness Book of World Records.”
Vuckovich referred to Kona Skatepark as the “grandaddy of all skateparks” and said it is the only remaining skatepark open from the boom of 1970s.
“There’s a lot of skateboarding history in Jacksonville, and I think, hopefully, this park will contribute to that,” he said.
The estimated cost for design, engineering and construction for Artist Walk, including the skatepark, is $8.8 million. Construction on the skatepark is expected to complete sometime late next year.
By Michele Leivas
Resident Community News
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