Warmer temperatures of late allowed some of the preliminary work associated with building a new skatepark on New Castle’s south side to begin.
New Castle Water Department employees were busy Thursday and Friday digging footers and moving soil at the future site of a new $295,000 skateboarding and BMX biking facility being built just north of the Aquatics Center at Baker Park, on the east side of S. Main Street where an outdoor volleyball court has been located the past several years.
New Castle Mayor Greg York said he is excited and pleased this effort is moving forward.
“We’ve dug the footers and we’re pouring concrete while the temperature is warm enough, so when the weather breaks we can really hit it hard,” York said. “We intend to have this up and running in the next three to four months.”
New Castle Parks Board President Patty Broyles is also pleased to see this project progressing.
“I think the community realizes how important this is for the young people and young families in this town to have something to go do,” she said. “I’m excited. This is just another little part of the effort being made by this administration to improve the quality of life for people who live here. Quality of life is something you hear a lot about from economic development people and I am just really excited to see this going!”
Hunger Skateparks of Bloomington was the lone bidder interested in building the planned 11,000-square-foot facility.
The project is being funded, in large part, with $275,000 in food and beverage tax funds. Mayor York and parks board members are hopeful the total cost can be reduced via in-kind donations of equipment and labor by the city, as well as material, labor and monetary donations from area businesses and individuals.
“We need this community to step up, and they can do that through the Henry County Community Foundation where we have a pass-through account,” Broyles previously stated.
The idea of building a skatepark was the result of a survey the parks board circulated as part of the process involved with drafting a 5-year master plan. A facility for skateboarders and BMX bikers was among the most frequently mentioned ways respondents indicated the city could improve the local parks system.
“This is truly a quality of life project,” Mayor York said. “If we’re recruiting businesses to come to New Castle and we don’t have the amenities that young families want, then we’re at a disadvantage. This is another opportunity like sports facilities, walking trails, the bike/ped plan, that puts the puzzle together and shows we can provide the amenities that younger families raising children want. I feel like the skatepark is going to draw people from other towns and it’s a recreational opportunity for the kids who live here and will be able to use it every day. The mayor of another city once told me that if you don’t have a skatepark in your city, then the city streets and sidewalks are your skatepark, and we’ve kind of proven that. Soon, we’ll have someplace for them to skate besides the streets.”
Anyone interested in donating funding, materials or labor towards the skatepark project is encouraged to call the mayor’s office at 765-529-7605.
