From sketch to skate: Washington-Jefferson park gets a fresh start
By Envision Magazine on May 27, 2014
Story by Rachel LaChapelle
Photo by Eli Lapidus
On April 4, 2014, Skaters and spectators poured through the gates of the Washington-Jefferson Skatepark and Urban Plaza in downtown Eugene to celebrate the park’s opening. A diverse crowd carrying skateboards, scooters, rollerblades and bikes,was eager to try out the ribbon and rails. The turnout sliced across social strata: a too-cool-to-care youth took a deliberate fall to dodge a toddler with kneepads knocking, and veteran skaters cheered on a girl still in grade school as she took to the snake run.
Since its opening day, the nation’s largest lit and covered skatepark has drawn passionate fans from the Willamette Valley and beyond. Roberto Gongora, a skating aficionado of twelve years who works at Tactics Board Shop, says that he and his fellow skaters are “overwhelmed with joy that we have a new skatepark.”
Though there are other skateparks in Eugene, Gongora says, “a lot of them are inadequate. They’re rough. Kids are vandalizing the parks and not taking care of them.”
Formerly limited to empty lots and parking garages, skaters now have 23,000 square feet of first-rate features protected from the elements by the I-105 bridge. The skatepark will be usable year-round despite Eugene’s rainy weather.
“This is definitely a refresh for skaters in Eugene,” says Gongora.
The skatepark was designed and built by the Lincoln City-based firm Dreamland Skateparks. The company, along with CEO Mark Scott, has roots in the renegade construction of Portland’s iconic Burnside Skatepark, which was built under the Burnside Bridge without city sanctions in 1990. Dreamland’s architect and designer Troy Mears says the company meshes technical skill with artistic vision, resulting in skateparks that are both functional and aesthetically appealing.
Dreamland Skateparks, the City of Eugene, and Parks and Recreation worked together to create a sustainable space for the community. Mears says it can be a challenge to make such a large concrete-and-steel structure sustainable, but they had some strategies. Materials, such as recycled crushed concrete, were reused from other projects to prevent excess waste. Natural features such as boulders and river rock were incorporated into the skatepark’s design. Energy-efficient LED lighting was installed to illuminate the skatepark. To protect fish and wildlife, a rain guard or bioswale was installed to cool and filter water running off the concrete before it enters nearby streams. Minimizing pesticide use, managing water use, and landscaping with hardy plants conserves money, resources, and the environment.
The Washington-Jefferson park renovations cost $2.5 million in total, around $750,000 of which was for the skatepark itself. The money came from a combination of city funding, donations, and grants. Projected annual maintenance costs for the skatepark and urban plaza are estimated to approach $150,000, according to Emily Proudfoot, the project’s manager and City of Eugene landscape architect. The city anticipates a return on its investment. The hope is that the park will bring national skating competitions to Eugene in the future, boosting the local economy and generating revenue to support the ongoing maintenance costs.
The project has taken months of construction and decades of planning. The idea had been in the works since 1990, when a group of skateboarding advocates proposed putting a skatepark under the cover of the I-105 bridge. The project became a priority for Eugene Parks and Recreation after a resurgence of community support in 2004. Proudfoot considers the social impact on the community to be an important sustainability feature. “People are participating in pro-social behavior as opposed to really anti-social behavior and criminal activity,” says Proudfoot, “It’s a much safer environment.”
This is compared to the days before the skatepark’s construction, when the Washington-Jefferson Park was in dire need of rejuvenation. The park, with its dilapidated forty-year-old infrastructure, was previously a minefield of used needles and a haven for nefarious activities, including a fatal stabbing in August 2009. The renovations helped address these problems by opening up clear sight lines that discourage shady crime. Safety features, such as security cameras and an emergency call box, will help to create a safe, accessible space for skaters and the community.
The space will be utilized by skaters of all stripes. For some of them, skateboarding is a sport; for others, it’s a social activity. For Gongora, “It’s a form of expression—every skater here has a different style, they move differently, they feel differently.” And for skateboarder Maxx Newberry, skating is “an art form” and the Washington-Jefferson Skatepark “a new canvas.”