The Martinsville Skatepark Project became the mission of a few parents when young skaters were seen using the city‘s streets and sidewalks to skateboard. “Why don’t we have a skatepark?” became the small talk among the parents of skating teens. In March 2022, the idea of a skate park in Martinsville was presented at a Common Council meeting and well received by those present, and with that, the Martinsville Skatepark Project Advocacy Group was established and a partnership with the city’s government was formed.
The Martinsville Skatepark Project became the mission of a few parents when young skaters were seen using the city‘s streets and sidewalks to skateboard. “Why don’t we have a skatepark?” became the small talk among the parents of skating teens. In March 2022, the idea of a skate park in Martinsville was presented at a Common Council meeting and well received by those present, and with that, the Martinsville Skatepark Project Advocacy Group was established and a partnership with the city’s government was formed.
Mayor Kenny Costin set forth having discussions with other cities’ officials to learn about their process and named a liaison to the advocacy group. Visits were made to several skateparks across the state and contact was made with the Tony Hawk Foundation (skateparks.org) to learn more about the process of building a municipal skatepark.
Mayor Costin stated, “Building a skatepark in Martinsville is something that has been talked about for years. This administration fully supports this project, and we look forward to continued work with the advocacy group as we bring this closer to becoming a reality.” This support from the city gave the advocacy group hope and ambition to keep the project moving forward. Teen skater, Preston Mayhew shares, “It feels really good that the city cares about what the people want.”
Moving forward, in recent weeks, the advocacy group has met with a professional skatepark design group to lay out the plans for the skatepark. During the meeting with the design group, skaters got excited when talking about the features they like to skate and what they would like to see in the proposed 10,000 square foot Martinsville skatepark. The specific location for the park has not been finalized as feasibility studies are underway.
The Martinsville Skatepark Project has its own Facebook group and frequently posts updates on the work of the advocacy group and the advancement of the skatepark’s progress.
