Skateboarders are woven into the cultural fabric of every urban community in North America. While young, they are stewards of the creative force that adds diversity to our cities. Nearly a quarter of the 65-million youth in the U.S. skated this year and most of those identify themselves as “skateboarders”. Given skateboarding’s popularity it’s not surprising that so many cities have perhaps one skate park, maybe two or three, to meet the needs of their thousands of youth. While this need remains, the news is filled with rising obesity rates, struggles with urban sprawl, and juvenile delinquency. Skateboarding is clearly not the sole solution for these community issues, but it’s obviously what millions of kids want to be doing. We can support this healthy and positive activity by making sure that there are enough skate parks, and that they’re designed and built for sustainability and success.

We the undersigned, as citizens of St. Petersburg, Florida, support the development of a free, public, regional skatepark on the waterfront in downtown St. Petersburg. We recognize the need for and the benefits of a free, public, regional skatepark and believe the city should fund, build and maintain the skatepark just as it would a basketball court, tennis court, or other public general use area.