Sounding off on skateparks

A round of public hearings begins tonight on preliminary plans by the city to build what could be an ambitious network of skateboard parks in Seattle's neighborhoods.

The meetings could be contentious, coming amid objections by neighbors to turning open green space at Lower Woodland Park into a skatepark.

The Seattle Department of Parks and Recreation had planned to complete the project this winter, but after neighbors appealed the plan to a hearing examiner, the project was put on hold.

Other critics are questioning the city's overall plan for skateparks, wondering if it overstates the demand.

This week's meetings, to be conducted by an 11-member skatepark task force appointed by Mayor Greg Nickels and City Councilman David Della, are aimed at getting early feedback from residents, skateboard enthusiasts and others in the hope of avoiding the conflict that arose over the Lower Woodland Park proposal.

The City Council created the task force in February after concluding that there were too few public places for the city's growing number of skateboarders. The Ballard Commons has the city's only permanent public skatepark; a public skatepark at Seattle Center is expected to be torn down later this year to make room for the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation's headquarters.

A City Council resolution calls on the task force and a consultant to propose a plan for building a network of "skateable terrain and skateparks." The resolution requires an evaluation of the overall demand for skateparks in Seattle and in specific neighborhoods.

Any new skateparks wouldn't take over existing sports fields, but likely would be built on unused green space in city parks or other public property. The task force is examining where to put four different types of skateable areas:

• Skatedots: Small features of less than 1,500 square feet, such as ledges, stairs and other "skateable terrain."

• Skatespots: As small as a half a basketball court and as large as a tennis court, these areas could accommodate a bowl like the Ballard Bowl.

• District: Ranging from 10,000 to 30,000 square feet, these sites could include space for BMX bikes or climbing.

• Regional: As large as a Little League baseball field, a soccer field or a football field, these larger sites could host sporting events.

After the hearings, the task force will rank possible sites and hold another round of public meetings in September, said Laura Weigel, a planner with Seattle consulting firm Aria Jackson Ellison Murakami.

The City Council would have final say over what gets built and how to pay for it.

Scott Shin, a task-force member and director of Parents for Skateparks, estimates that there are 26,500 skateboarders in Seattle.

But Bruce Petrie, a parent who protested the skateboard facility in Lower Woodland Park, suggests that there are fewer than 3,000 citywide.

Kris Fuller, a spokeswoman for the Lower Woodland Neighborhood Association, also wonders if the pool of potential users will dry up as families with children leave Seattle for more affordable places to live.

"What's the point of spending millions and millions of dollars in building skateparks if the kids aren't going to use them for more than two years or so?" Fuller said. "They're going to get bored with them."

John Carr, a skatepark task-force member and avid skateboarder, counters that skateboarding is one of the fastest-growing sports in the nation and the city needs to consider future demand.

Sanjay Bhatt: 206-464-3103 or sbhatt@seattletimes.com