Later this month, Boulder will begin embarking on its skate park improvement and pump track project, which has been in the works since 2019.
In the $680,000 project, the city intends to update the existing Scott Carpenter Skate Park and to build a new skate park and pump track at Valmont City Park as well as a new, smaller skate area at Howard Heuston Park.
According to Planning and Ecological Services Manager Jeff Haley, Boulder has seen skateboarding and BMX riding as a good way to get outside during the pandemic, considering both are sports that allow appropriate distancing and have no shared equipment.
“Scott Carpenter Skate Park was one of the first built along the Front Range over 21 years ago and is due for updating,” Haley stated in a city news release.
While skating and riding are some of the least expensive sports and are equitable activities that most can participate in, Haley acknowledged that Boulder residents often drive to other communities to expand their skills due to “our lack of quality skate amenities here.”
Work at Scott Carpenter and Howard Heuston is slated to begin in late April and will be finished by the end of May. City spokesperson Jonathan Thornton said the Scott Carpenter project will happen first and is tentatively set to begin April 27.
Pump track installation and skate park construction at Valmont City Park will begin in May and continue through the end of the summer. Construction schedules are tentative and dependent on other factors, according to the city.
Valmont City Park’s Green Block DIY skate features, a street course skateboard area within the existing pavilion at the park, will remain in place, at least for now.
“We’re very proud that the community has built that,” Thornton said. “We don’t have any plans to take it away for now. Plans may change. (But) we want to make sure the community feels like they’re a part of this project.”
