Community rallies for new skate park in Oak Cliff
There's a final fundraising push to bring a new skate park to Oak Cliff.
It's something Dallas resident Malachi Webster is excited about. He's an avid skateboarder.
"I just like the mental battle it puts you through, the adversity," he said.
He said, unfortunately, an east Dallas skatepark is the only public skatepark in the city. He wishes there were more options.
"It's old, everything is metal... so when it's hot, it burns, so we're limited on progression," he said.
"There's a needs inventory that has been out there showing that we really have a need for about 15 skate parks throughout the city and we have one right now with another one on the way at Bachman Lake," Dallas City Councilman Chad West said.
He has been working to bring a 25,500 sq ft skatepark to Westmoreland Park in Oak Cliff.
"This is a highly populated area with young children and families," he said. "The park hasn't had much done in years and years, and there are several acres here to work with."
The park will be modeled after the Alliance Skatepark in Grand Prairie and will be suitable for skateboards, bikes, roller skates and scooters.
"A lot of people would have more places to skate other than on the street," skater Sasha Starostin said.
"Different obstacles as well, that's what I see kids gravitate more towards," Webster said.
Thanks to the 2024 bond, $1 million will go toward the skate park. West is also working to get $400,000 in donations and said Dallas Parks and Rec has committed to matching that. There will be a public fundraising event March 27 at Cibo Divino from 4:30- 6:00 p.m.
"We're going to hopefully announce a big matching opportunity from a private foundation there," West said.
West believes a skate park in Oak Cliff will be a huge asset to the community and points out that traditional sports don't always appeal to all kids.
"As kids get older, they're more susceptible to other types of activities that we might not want them doing, so let's keep them active, let's keep them fit," West said.
Final designs are in the works and construction is scheduled to begin this year.
