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‘So excited’: Long-awaited West Shore skate park gets opening date

Thrifty Foods Skate Park at West Shore Parks and Recreation a project seven years in the making

The West Shore has been without a skate park since 2015, but after years of hard work by the community, that is set to change on May 13.

That’s the official opening date of the Thrifty Foods Skate Park – located at West Shore Parks and Recreation’s lower park. For Jimmy Miller, president of the West Shore Skate Park Coalition, which has been leading the charge to build a new park, it’s a triumph of cooperation.

“We’re all very happy, and it’s such a unique place to be. It was a very slow birth, but the baby is finally here,” said Miller. “We are all so excited to share what we worked so hard on with the community, and of course the community worked so hard with us, too.”

Sparked by the loss of the Belmont skate park when it was demolished, the new park is based on designs created in 2017 by New Line Skate Parks. Despite the relatively humble space it occupies, Miller said the park packs in a wide variety of features for riders of all abilities and interests, and includes some features unique to the region.

READ MORE: New skate park officially coming to the West Shore in early 2023

“It ticks all the boxes … the lunar landscape aspect with a flow zone in the middle, there are not many parks built like that around here. We have the street section, which ticks some boxes and includes some granite ledges which is new for the Victoria area thanks to a donation by Red Dragon Apparel,” he said. “There is the pool or bowl, and that was designed as an homage to an empty swimming pool, and even has the classic pool tile and block look.”

Miller said having a skate park on the West Shore once again is a huge boon for the sport and the community. Being closer to home for many skaters, especially younger ones, means they won’t have to navigate busses or get rides from their parents to go to skate parks elsewhere in the region.

Having it at West Shore Parks and Recreation also means it can fit in with the centre’s other programming, and already plans are in the works for various classes and camps this summer.

“It’s been an amazing project, and we are so excited to be opening on the 13th of May,” said Bobbi Neal, community development programmer with West Shore Parks and Recreation. “We are going to see five camps come to the park, and they will all be beginner-style camps, and we plan on making them inclusive, reaching out to some parts of the community that may not have been exposed to a skate park setting before.”

Neal said there are also plans to have skate park ambassadors on site to help with park etiquette and guide younger skaters with some tips and tricks.

The official opening is set for May 13 from 1 to 3 p.m., and will feature speeches, a ribbon cutting and, of course, riding the new features.

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@JSamanski
justin.samanski-langille@goldstreamgazette.com

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Justin Samanski-Langille

About the Author: Justin Samanski-Langille

I moved coast-to-coast to discover and share the stories of the West Shore, joining Black Press in 2021 after four years as a reporter in New Brunswick.
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