Skaters of all ages turned out Tuesday night to Boston City Hall to support a skatepark planned for under the ramps to the Leonard P. Zakim Bunker Hill Bridge in Charlestown.
The park is expected to open in 2006 and is being built to give skaters a safe place to practice, said Renata von Tscharner, president of the Charles River Conservancy.
Von Tscharner said the idea for the park came about after Nancy Schon, a sculptor who created the ducks in the Public Garden and Copley Square, saw skaters skating on her works and “realized they were good kids with nowhere to go.”
The park is being designed to cater to skaters of all ages, said Zach Wormhoudt, the skatepark designer and landscape architect. He emphasized how safety has played a key role in the design of the park, which will include steel plates that connect the railings to the ground so skaters who slip on the railing will not get their feet caught under the rail and have them “break off.”
“The goal here is to create a park for all skating levels,” he said.
Wormhoudt said the park is currently in the design stages, and he plans to consult with skaters on the layout. He also said a number of public workshops were held within the past few months to share ideas and incorporate them into the site.
Current skatepark plans include a transition section for advanced skaters and a street section for intermediates and beginners. The transition section will include a 10.5-foot-deep bowl, while the street section will contain 20-inch-high pipe rails and multiple levels.
The park is being designed to accommodate skateboarders, inline skaters and BMX bikers. The plan includes areas for the public to watch, and the park may be lit for night skating as well, Wormhoudt said. He added that he hopes everyone will be able to enjoy the park, no matter their skill level.
“I want the park to be world class, but function for a first time user and for pros,” Wormhoudt said.
Von Tscharner, who is the mother of a 13-year-old skating enthusiast, said she was excited for the park to open because it will give skaters somewhere to go. She added that many people do not like skaters because they think they are delinquents, but she said many simply do not understand skating.
“Some people who are opposed to the park have a misconception with skateboarders or connect them with drugs,” she said. “Skateboarders are healthy, ambitious kids, and you can’t be on drugs and on a skateboard.”
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