Skaters find legitimacy at new park

A skater enjoys the obstacles at Madison Central Skate Park. (Rebecca Radix/Madison Commons)

Madison’s skate community has a new place to call home.

Madison Central Park Skatepark, a long-awaited project that was 14 years in the making, opened September 10, 2015. For many in the local skate scene the park is warmly welcomed and long overdue.

“A city like this should have had this 15 years ago. But that said, it’s going to be an amazing resource for the skate community,” Madison skater David Gould said.

Part of the push for a park amongst the skate community stems from the fact that it is only legal to skate on city sidewalks in Madison.

 “I have a lot of friends that skate and they’re really excited about it because everywhere they go that’s not a skate park they get bounced from,” bystander and parent Greg Katechis said.

“I think it will stop a lot of people from getting in trouble and skating where they’re not supposed to be skating,” local skater Brandon Reuter added.

Katechis watches as his 9-year-old daughter Calliope Katechis ride in and out of the crowds and among the various street obstacles that make up the 20,000 square foot park.

“We were here last night when they opened and it’s super nice–a bunch of kids, and just a good environment it seems like. I’m pretty stoked,” Katechis said.

 Families and strollers abound, dotting the fresh concrete landscape and refuting any idea of skate parks as “teenagers only.”

Eight-year-old Luca Ferreira and his little brother are learning to ride from their uncle who skated in his youth. Their mother, Patrizia Ferreira, cheers them on. The family moved to Madison a year ago and upon hearing about the new skate park decided to come check it out.

The park provides a solution for skateboarders who want to skate somewhere other than sidewalks (Rebecca Radix/Madison Commons)“It’s awesome, it looks like the city totally needed this. I mean I can’t imagine all these people mingling around the city not having a place to gather,” Patrizia said. 

Now that Madison’s skaters do have a place to come together, local skater David Gould says he can see the park’s existence having positive impacts on the city’s skate culture in the future.

“It legitimizes it for sure. Skating is already legitimized on the West Coast but it will help, it will help a lot. And I think these kids are going to get really good and hopefully everyone just respects it and respects each other and keep a cool head about it and then we’ll hopefully get more opportunities like this in the future,” he said.