TUCSON, Ariz. (KGUN) — The faces of the Tucson skate community line the walls of the underpass at Cushing Street and I-10. There is still something missing there: a park where they can skate.
"Skateboarding is everything to me. That feeling I got as a kid is the same feeling I get at 50-years-old now," said Tucson Skate Park Alliance Co-Chair, Chris Atkins.
Atkins is working to make this long-time dream a reality. He, and several others, are encouraging the City of Tucson to build a park beneath the overpass to create a place people can skate, rain or shine.
"Because it is a covered location, I think people are going to utilize it a lot more. If you go to other skate parks around Tucson in the Summer at 2 p.m., they're empty. This is going to allow people to skate year-round," said Atkins.
Tucson City Council approved having a feasibility study and design concept done. They are looking to other cities that have built similar parks and had success doing it.
"We actually hosted the X Games here in Boise, Idaho for skate and BMX bike. It was all because of our skate park located in Downtown Boise," said City of Boise Parks and Recreation Director, Doug Holloway.
"The reason that I, as the Director of Parks, think it's important is because we have more and more kids who want to skate. They don't have a lot of places to go and do it, said City of Tucson Parks and Recreation Director, Lara Hamwey.
The project would be partly funded by Tucson Delivers: a voter approved initiative that aims to improve the city's parks. In the end, they want the park to be something everyone can enjoy. The Tucson Skate Park Alliance is also raising funds for the project.
"We don't want it to be cookie cutter. We really want it to reflect Tucson's rich history and diverse culture. Bring out the artist community. We really want to make it nice and visual. Even the non-skater walking by will think it's really nice and really cool," said Atkins.
The City of Tucson is hosting a virtual community input meeting on Tuesday, February 22 at 5:30 p.m.
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