About
Photo by Frank Hamrick
Photo by Tony Molina
Photo by Frank Hamrick
Photo by Frank Hamrick
WHY A SKATEPARK
The Skatepark of Ruston will further the mission of the City of Ruston Parks and Recreation Department. This mission is “to offer a diverse package of quality recreation programs, events, and park experiences that improve the quality of life for all residents.” The Skatepark will expand this mission by bringing together skateboarding and public art in a centrally located, unique center that will serve as a hub for a diverse group of citizens and visitors of all ages.
This site is created to raise awareness for a skatepark in Ruston LA. Skateboarders in Ruston and the surrounding areas need a dedicated, safe park to skate. No concrete parks exist in a 150 mile radius. We have worked towards this park for 5 years, with meetings and collaboration between the City of Ruston's Parks and Recreation, Louisiana Tech University's School of Design, and the North Central Louisiana Arts Council. Hunger Skateparks and the City of Ruston worked together and created construction documents in 2017 to repurpose the former city pool as a concrete skatepark. With the large scale of construction on the Ruston Sports Complex, the 2019 tornado, this year’s COVID-19, and most recently, Hurricane Laura, the park has been put on the back burner. Because of Covid and the lock down, many kids and adults in the surrounding areas have been reaching out in large numbers, asking about the status of the project. I’ve decided to push the project as far as I can to make this a reality.
GOAL (updated 12/12/21)
This site is to raise awareness and funds for Ruston Skatepark through our nonprofit, Friends of Ruston Skatepark. We are collaborating with the City of Ruston, who has agreed to break ground on Phase 1 of the project in 2022 if we raise $100,000 by May. Any additional funds raised over $100,000 will push us into Phase 2.
NOT JUST A PLACE TO SKATE
This park will not just be a skatepark, we are aiming bigger than that! We want to turn the current eyesore of memorial park into a place that everyone in Ruston can appreciate. We will install public sculpture and murals. A walking path around the park will give locals and travelers a place to walk and look at great art. Louisiana Tech faculty in the School of Design’s Art and Architecture are working together with the city of Ruston to make this happen. We plan to have local art as well as nationally known muralist and sculptors. These art spaces will have an open call and rotate out every year.
SKATEBOARDING: THE SPORT, THE CULTURE
Skateboarding is one of the fastest growing sports in the world right now. It is now an Olympic sport. There are many benefits of skateboarding that will help your child not only in their adolescent years, but as an adult. Skateboarding increases coordination, builds metabolism (burns calories), strengthens muscles, builds stamina and increases self-confidence! Personal growth and individuality are a core component of skateboarding culture. In today's pandemic environment, skateboarding is a sport that keeps with social distancing, as it is not a contact sport.
Skateboarding and its culture teaches kids about social etiquette, inclusion, empathy, perseverance and goal-setting. It also allows them the opportunity of artistic expression through style and tricks. Skateboarding is also FUN!
KIDS DESERVE A PLACE TO GROW
Skateparks build and sustain healthy communities. As a gathering place for dedicated, athletic youth, the skatepark provides the forum for visitors young and old, beginning and skilled, to meet and share experiences. For many skateboarding youth, the skatepark becomes a home-away-from-home.
SKATEPARKS BOOST LOCAL ECONOMIES
Skateparks have a positive economic impact on local businesses and the surrounding area. Families from outlying communities bring over their kids and may go shopping or grab something to eat. Skateparks attracts many people to local businesses who wouldn’t be there otherwise. They also tend to have a positive impact on communities and utilize unused space.
SENSE OF BELONGING
More than anyone, young people need to feel like they are recognized and appreciated by their communities. In too many places skateboarders get the wrong message from local authorities who limit or outlaw skateboarding and ignore its inherent benefits. Skateparks are the solution. Every skatepark supports hundreds of kids that might otherwise have nowhere to go.
85 MILLION SKATEBOARDERS WORLDWIDE
The vast majority is under the age of 18 according to Statista.com This number is probably going to get bigger over the next five years as the industry will continue to grow.23.9% of all Skaters are Female When you ride around your local skate park doing your thing you don’t see many females, at least not where I’m from. According to research from Grandviewresearch, 23.9% of all skateboarders are femalehowever this also includes longboards and cruisers. I for one welcome our female skateboarder overlords and there are some great female skateboarders out there currently!
SKATEBOARDING IS NOW AN OLYMPIC SPORT
The 2020 USA skateboarding National Team was set to compete in Tokyo but will have to wait until 2021.
Historically, skateboarding was a sport for self-driven individuals who measure success, not from a trophy, but by obtaining goals you set for yourself. While skateboarding is a sport requiring a lot of skill and agility, it was not taken very seriously and skateboarders were okay with that. Now that skateboarding will be part of the Olympics, what effect will it have on the culture?
According to Murillo Olivera ‘22, it will expand on the culture of skateboarding.
“Having skateboarding in the Olympics will change the way people see it and people will take it more seriously,” he said.
Most skateboarders would agree that it is an independent sport and more of a way of expressing themselves rather than a standard sport like football or basketball, which are more competitive. Most skateboarders get into the sport for the love of it rather than to win a trophy or tournament. It is also more supportive and creative than other sports with skateboarding legend Tony Hawk saying, “You go to a skate park and see a kid trying something and suddenly all the other skaters rally around him and encourage him. It is a collective effort for everyone to get better. The community embraces you.”
Sources
https://www.skateboardershq.com/skateboard-statistics-facts/
https://skatepark.org/public-skateparks/
Thank you!
Joey Slaughter