£50K needed to set up skate park (From Free Press Series)

£50K needed to set up skate park

TO set up a temporary skatepark with a large mini-ramp complex for youngsters in Abergavenny would cost around £50,000.

Some of the young skateboarders have identified a few possible sites, including Tuckers Mill car park in Lion Street, where a temporary provision can be made.

They gave a presentation to last week's Abergavenny town council, which included a few words from Gareth Evans, a designer with Cardiff Skate Parks, who gave an estimate of the cost of providing a temporary skatepark.

Parents Helen Gunter and Marion Pearce spoke of collecting 1,650 signatures in just six hours in Abergavenny town centre on two Saturdays, and this was presented to the mayor, Cllr Chris Woodhouse.

Mrs Gunter said they felt that the Tuckers Mill site would be ideally situated in the town centre and was owned by Monmouthshire County Council who use it as a car park.

She said: "The action group surveyed Bailey Park, with the help of experts, and found it does not offer adequate space for a skatepark.

"There are some very good clubs in Abergavenny offering facilities for young people, but we strongly believe that a skatepark is absolutely necessary for our young people."

Fifteen year old Sophie Forbes Nash, vice chairman of Monmouthshire Youth Council said they conducted a survey at King Henry V111 Comprehensive School and found a skatepark top of everyone's list, followed by a cinema and then more outdoor sports facilities.

She said whenever the skateboarders found a suitable place to practise their sport, they were always told to move on by the police.

Mike Diamond, 19, said he had been skateboarding for six years and the sport had gained a very bad image over the years. "We feel a skatepark could bring a lot to Abergavenny, because there are young people in the villages who are interested.

"But the park should not be built without talking to young people first who know the sport inside out."

Gareth Evans said he had looked at the Tuckers Mill site and found it could accommodate a free standing mini-ramp complex.

The mayor said the county council will set aside capital next year to build a skatepark in Abergavenny.

He said Tuckers Mill was only one of a few sites identified as suitable for a temporary skatepark.