Debate on Skateboard Park Grinds On
Part I of a three-part series examining both the pros and cons of Pitcher Park, the proposed Dormont skateboard facility.
By Zandy Dudiak November 7, 2011
On July 15, 2008, former Dormont resident Mary Pitcher lost two of
her four sons in a drowning incident at a reservoir in the Allegheny
National Forest. The young men, Stephen Pitcher, 19, and Vincent Pitcher, 21,
who grew up in Dormont, were avid skateboarders. As a memorial to the two lives
lost, their mother, now a resident of Scott Township, approached Dormont Council
about establishing a skateboard park and raising the money for its construction.
Since then, the proposed facility has been fraught with controversy. This
three-part series will look at existing skateboard facilities in other
municipalities, as well as examine the views of those opposed to the creation of
one in Dormont—and those who feel it would be an asset to the borough.
Thomas Bechtel admits his first reaction to creating a skateboard park in Wheeling, WV, was not a positive one.
"I wasn't one of those people in favor when they proposed it," said Bechtel,
who is recreation director in Wheeling, about 50 miles from Dormont.
It took five years from the time a 12-year-old approached Wheeling Council
with a request to build a skatepark until it came to fruition in October 2007,
thanks to $300,000 in grants, contributions and in-kind products.
Though initially opposed to the plan, Bechtel turned into one of the park's
biggest fans after opening day, when about 400-500 kids showed up to try out the
new concrete bowls and street elements.
"From day one, it's been unbelievable," he said in an interview last week.
"I've really been impressed. They actually take care of it themselves. I was
shocked."
According to the Public Skatepark Development Guide, there were more than 13
million skateboarders in the United States in 2008, 93.7 percent of whom are
younger than 24. With about 80 million people between the ages of 5 and 24 in
the U.S., the guide suggests that about one out of every seven young people are
skateboarders.
Skateboarding has grown in popularity with sports heroes such as professional
skateboarder Tony
Hawk and more off-beat icons like Bam Margera of
MTV's "Jackass" fame. In fact, skateboarding even has its own fashion style.
"You wouldn't have hired one of them," said Bechtel, referring to the
appearances of some of the skateboarders who helped build the park there.
"Sometimes, you really misjudge people. I know I did."
He said the volunteers were 10 to 12 of the "hardest workers I've met in my
life ... the nicest people. They're a different breed of cat. These are kids who
aren't into football, baseball and basketball."
Chris Blackwell, principal planner for Penn Hills for 20 years, agreed with
the assessment that skateboarders are often kids who march to a different beat.
But unlike Bechtel, who had initial doubts, Blackwell was a proponent of Penn
Hills having a skatepark from the get-go, especially because it was a sport his
own son enjoyed.
"It's the most successful project I've ever been involved in," he said,
without hesitation.
Blackwell, who has visited skateparks across the country, said the Penn Hills project was well thought out. It includes
a pavilion that offers kids a place to feel comfortable, long-wearing equipment
and rules of conduct that have helped the park maintain a nice facility.
"You have to recognize kids need a place to be," he said. "It's packed."
The Penn Hills skatepark is located in a separate section of the small Duff
Park, between a school and a daycare center some distance away. The skatepark in
Findlay Township is in a sports/recreation complex and the one in Wheeling in a
somewhat isolated area near some ballfields.
The 18-year-old skateboarders there are patient enough to teach the 6 year
olds how to skateboard, Bechtel said. In comparison, on Wheeling's basketball
courts, he said, those 6 years olds would "not stand a chance."
Gary Klingman, Finlay Township manager, said there is a wide age range of
those using the skatepark that opened in 2005 at the Finley Township Recreation and Sports Complex,
including parents who accompany their children. Most of the users are in their
early teens.
"We actually have people in their 40s using it," Klingman said. "One of the
things that helps us is the adults involved."
Vandalism and crime are often two things that concern residents about nearby
skateboard parks. But those officials speaking about their municipal skateparks
say the problems mostly come from non-skateboarders.
There has been graffiti at facilities, but Blackwell said the kind that has
had to be removed was not done by the skateboarders. And graffiti is not limited
to skateboard facilities, but is also done in other park locations as well.
Blackwell noted that skateboarders don't do such things as pour cooking oil
or paint on the ramps because they don't want to ruin a facility they use. The
crime that has occurred at the site is generally against skateboarders, not by
them, he said.
"Those incidents are not skateboarder to skateboarder," Blackwell said.
He also said language among the older skateboarders can get rough, but also
pointed out that "that's what they do"—meaning youths in general, not just
skateboarders.
Since the Findlay Township skatepark opened six years ago, there might have
been two times police were called to break up fights—and one of those fights was
over a girl, Klingman said. He pointed out that could have as easily happened on
the street as in the park.
Another thing people get concerned about is drugs and alcohol—and good police
patroling might be keeping that to a minimum in Wheeling, Penn Hills and
Findlay.
Blackwell said it has been a "non-issue" in Penn Hills, but acknowledged that
it can happen in any public park, not just the skateboarding area. Bechtel said
a playground is just as likely an area for such activities to occur.
"If you think your community doesn't have drugs and alcohol, you're crazy,"
Blackwell said.
What all the municipal officials agree on is that litter is a problem.
Klingman said the skatepark was once closed for three days because of the litter
left behind.
"That brought them to their senses real quick," he said.
But again, Klingman said, other park activities bring their share of litter,
too.
Although the county skateparks at South Park and Boyce Park require helmets,
most don't. Klingman said Findlay officials worked out its rules with a
liability insurance company, including that children under age 9 must be
accompanied by a parent.
The skatepark there has 10-foot fences and motion detectors to alert police
if anyone is in the fenced-in area after the park closes. Findlay also offers
safety demonstrations in hopes of preventing the injuries that can occur with skateboarding.
Klingman notes that without a skatepark, the youngsters would find other
places to skateboard. The less-safe alternatives such as loading docks, decks
and stair rails can lead to more injuries than the grind rails, bowls and ramps
that skateparks provide—and often end up being in commercial areas, which annoys
shop owners.
All three of these parks were up and operating on the day that brothers
Stephen and Vincent Pitcher, both skateboarding enthusiasts from Dormont, lost
their lives in a tragic drowning incident.
Just a few months later, their mother, Mary Pitcher, came up with an idea to
raise money for a skatepark in Dormont Park that would honor their lives. The first
solid plans came to Dormont Council in August 2009.
One public meeting was held to present the plan and to get citizen input on
the pros and cons of the proposal. A revised plan based on those comments was
presented for review at a second meeting.
However, in November 2009, borough council rejected the proposal by a 5-2
vote. After new council members took office in January 2010, the proposal came
up again and was approved by a 4-3 vote in April 2010.
Since that vote, the skateboard park has been an issue with sharply
divided opinions. It has been the subject of several comment threads on
Dormont-Brookline Patch, which led to this series to present all sides of the
controversy.Attempts to contact officials in Canonsburg and
Pittsburgh's Citiparks, which also have skateparks, were unsuccessful by
deadline.
Part II of this series will appear on Patch on Wednesday, Nov. 9.
It will examine why some people are opposed to the proposed skateboard park—and
why their reasons aren't all about skateboarding.
To view Part II, click here.
To view Part III, click here.
Skatepark Proposal Doesn't Land Right for Some
Part II of a three-part series examining both the pros and cons of Pitcher Park, the proposed Dormont skateboard facility.
By Zandy Dudiak
On July 15, 2008, former Dormont resident Mary Pitcher lost two of her
four sons in a drowning incident at a reservoir in the Allegheny
National Forest. The young men, Stephen Pitcher, 19, and Vincent Pitcher, 21,
who grew up in Dormont, were avid skateboarders. As a memorial to the two lives
lost, their mother, now a resident of Scott Township, approached Dormont
Council about establishing a skateboard park and raising the money for its
construction. Since then, the proposed facility has been fraught with
controversy. This three-part series will look at existing skateboard facilities
in other municipalities, as well as examine the views of those opposed to the
creation of one in Dormont—and those who feel it would be an asset to the
borough.
"It's not that we're against skateboarders," Jeremy Smith emphasized as a
group of Dormont residents opposed to Pitcher Park gathered to discuss their
concerns with Patch.
In fact, if the skatepark were constructed on private property, some said
they wouldn't oppose the idea at all. But its proposed location—and actions that
must be taken for it to be built—are what has brought this group together a few
weeks ago to raise the issues.
Though the 11 or so residents gathered each had their individual concerns,
they concurred that they don't feel the expectations outlined in a document,
"Multi-Use Park Questions and Answers," authored by council members Heather
Schmidt and Laurie Malka in May, 2010, are being met as plans for the skatepark
proceed.
Though not a legally binding document, the 13 points outlined in the
three-page paper set the parameters of what the borough expects from the
nonprofit Pitcher Park Memorial Skatepark as it proceeds with plans for the
skatepark facility, which would also accommodate BMX bikers and rollerbladers.
The residents say that borough council has not given much response to their
concerns.
"I want what was promised," said Daniele Ventresca, one of the residents.
"They just put what people wanted to hear into the document."
Though the Pitcher Park group initially proposed funding a skatepark only,
the document indicates to make that happen means the group has to finance
construction of the skatepark at the site of the Banksville Road tennis courts
in Dormont Park, refurbish the old courts along Memorial
Drive, reconstruct the existing basketball court and add a dog park. The
foundation would also provide a maintenance fund to help provide upkeep for the
facility.
"There is another side to this story," said Amy Keaney, who lives near the
park. "We're complaining they've started work and finished work that's not
satisfactory, to our beliefs."
One of the issues voiced by the residents opposed to the skatepark is the
fact that it would take the place of much-used tennis courts along Banksville
Road—and they claim the 75-year-old ones refurbished by the Pitcher Park group this summer along Memorial Drive
aren't of the same quality.
"To their credit, it looks much nicer," Smith said, noting, though, that
three regulation courts will be eliminated and replaced with two non-regulation
courts.
Resident Ken Krugh researched safety zone standards of the U.S. Tennis
Association and found the 120-by-60-foot Banksville Road courts meet those
requirements. Not only don't the Memorial Drive courts meet the safety zone
standards for regulation courts, they don't meet the standards for recreational
court safety zones either, he noted.
Minimum court size is 114-by-56 feet and recreational size courts should be
at least 110-by-54 feet. According to measurements done by Krugh, the width for
one of the Memorial Drive courts falls short of recreational-court standards by
4 feet, and the space between the court and the fence is not even on both
sides.
"The initial layout for the courts playing area on Memorial Drive is not
centered between the fencing," Krugh said. "This makes one side more dangerous
because of the smaller safety zone."
"Someone could get injured," said Dee Krugh, his wife. She also raised
concern about the lack of sidewalks along Memorial Drive for those walking down
to the proposed skateboard area.
Ventresca questioned the quality of the materials used to refurbish the
Memorial Drive courts this summer compared to the existing Banksville Road
courts. The older courts were originally clay and, more recently, used by
rollerbladers and those practicing hockey.
"My issue is why are we moving the tennis courts," she said.
Although there was initial opposition to a plan to locate the skatepark in
the tennis court area on Memorial Drive, there is also opposition to taking out
the larger, newer courts on Banksville Road.
Keaney mentioned a conversation with Chris Blackwell, Penn Hills principal
planner, where he said he would not have ever put that municipality's
skatepark on a well-used recreational facility. (Though Penn Hills did build
the skatepark on former tennis courts, they had been unused and in disrepair
for a number of years. Blackwell is scheduled to attend the Nov. 14 Dormont Council meeting.)
The residents also raised the issue that if the Banksville courts are
eliminated, Keystone Oaks Band will lose the prime spot for its Christmas tree
sale that raises money for the band trips. The problem was addressed in the May
24, 2010 document, which states the band can instead use the basketball courts
or any level surfaces in the park, as well as using the Memorial Drive tennis
courts to hold trees should the skatepark be built.
The dog park is proposed for a tier above the Memorial Drive courts, on an
area where a gas line makes construction impossible.
Smith pointed to the discussions that proceeded the skatepark getting a green
light from council. Though talk of the park began in Oct. 2008, it wasn't until
the next summer that a proposal was submitted to council.
"It became clear to them (Pitcher Park group) and council that it needed to
be formalized," Smith recalled.
Opposition to the skatepark began just a few months after the proposal for
the park surfaced in 2009. A website, www.savedormontpark.com, though now out of date, was
established to challenge the park based on its location, visual impact,
sound/noise issues, environmental impact, size, maintenance and other
issues.
After public meetings and several council committee meetings to discuss the
pros and cons, council voted down the skateboard park proposal in November 2009.
But in April 2010, with new council members on board, the plan was approved by a
4-3 vote.
That vote was taken at a council meeting the Monday after Easter, according
to Smith, and was not well publicized. And, Ventresca said, the action item
missed the deadline to be placed on the printed agenda for the meeting, leaving
people in the dark until it was brought up from the floor by council.
Smith and Keaney both have concerns with the process. Smith wonders whether
the borough or the nonprofit skatepark group will have the final say about the
contractor and if it will be put out for bid since the equipment will be
donated.
Smith also has concerns about liability coverage, police coverage, lighting
for the park and whether the Pitcher Park group will be able to raise the money
needed for the project. He said council and the group have not given any
reassurances about those issues nor answered questions pertaining to them.
"The Pitcher Park people should be aware of what the process is, too," he
said.
The money should be raised before any work begins, Smith noted. He also said
that if "bad things happen" at the park and it would need removed, it would have
to be done at the borough's expense.
Ken Krugh said when the liability issue has been raised with council,
residents have been told it is covered under the borough's "umbrella" plan. But
he questions if that would cover the cost if someone is hurt.
Ventresca and Keaney suggested that traffic and feasibility studies should be
done prior to allowing the facility to be built.
Aesthetics are another problem with a skatepark at the entrance to Dormont
Park. Cindy Lucas raised the issue of graffiti creating a less-than-desirable
appearance and Dee Krugh noted that outhouses might need to be at that
location.
"We have a beautiful entrance now," Keaney said.
Councilman John Maggio, who was contacted after the meeting with residents,
said he's concerned that the Pitcher Park supporters have "never given a solid
answer to" some of the concerns raised by residents. He also doesn't agree with
the way the park was approved by council.
Maggio and some of the residents, while understanding Pitcher's desire to
memorialize her sons, feel that the sympathy people have for her situation is
overriding some of the issues the skatepark might create.
"They made their deal to get the vote through," Maggio said. "Some of the
women (on council) voted with their hearts, not their heads."
Part III of this series will appear on Patch on Friday, Nov. 11.
It will look at what is being proposed, the lack of recreation for teens in
Dormont and how those who support the park feel about it.
To view Part I, click here. To view Part III, click here.
four sons in a drowning incident at a reservoir in the Allegheny
National Forest. The young men, Stephen Pitcher, 19, and Vincent Pitcher, 21,
who grew up in Dormont, were avid skateboarders. As a memorial to the two lives
lost, their mother, now a resident of Scott Township, approached Dormont
Council about establishing a skateboard park and raising the money for its
construction. Since then, the proposed facility has been fraught with
controversy. This three-part series will look at existing skateboard facilities
in other municipalities, as well as examine the views of those opposed to the
creation of one in Dormont—and those who feel it would be an asset to the
borough.
"It's not that we're against skateboarders," Jeremy Smith emphasized as a
group of Dormont residents opposed to Pitcher Park gathered to discuss their
concerns with Patch.
In fact, if the skatepark were constructed on private property, some said
they wouldn't oppose the idea at all. But its proposed location—and actions that
must be taken for it to be built—are what has brought this group together a few
weeks ago to raise the issues.
Though the 11 or so residents gathered each had their individual concerns,
they concurred that they don't feel the expectations outlined in a document,
"Multi-Use Park Questions and Answers," authored by council members Heather
Schmidt and Laurie Malka in May, 2010, are being met as plans for the skatepark
proceed.
Though not a legally binding document, the 13 points outlined in the
three-page paper set the parameters of what the borough expects from the
nonprofit Pitcher Park Memorial Skatepark as it proceeds with plans for the
skatepark facility, which would also accommodate BMX bikers and rollerbladers.
The residents say that borough council has not given much response to their
concerns.
"I want what was promised," said Daniele Ventresca, one of the residents.
"They just put what people wanted to hear into the document."
Though the Pitcher Park group initially proposed funding a skatepark only,
the document indicates to make that happen means the group has to finance
construction of the skatepark at the site of the Banksville Road tennis courts
in Dormont Park, refurbish the old courts along Memorial
Drive, reconstruct the existing basketball court and add a dog park. The
foundation would also provide a maintenance fund to help provide upkeep for the
facility.
"There is another side to this story," said Amy Keaney, who lives near the
park. "We're complaining they've started work and finished work that's not
satisfactory, to our beliefs."
One of the issues voiced by the residents opposed to the skatepark is the
fact that it would take the place of much-used tennis courts along Banksville
Road—and they claim the 75-year-old ones refurbished by the Pitcher Park group this summer along Memorial Drive
aren't of the same quality.
"To their credit, it looks much nicer," Smith said, noting, though, that
three regulation courts will be eliminated and replaced with two non-regulation
courts.
Resident Ken Krugh researched safety zone standards of the U.S. Tennis
Association and found the 120-by-60-foot Banksville Road courts meet those
requirements. Not only don't the Memorial Drive courts meet the safety zone
standards for regulation courts, they don't meet the standards for recreational
court safety zones either, he noted.
Minimum court size is 114-by-56 feet and recreational size courts should be
at least 110-by-54 feet. According to measurements done by Krugh, the width for
one of the Memorial Drive courts falls short of recreational-court standards by
4 feet, and the space between the court and the fence is not even on both
sides.
"The initial layout for the courts playing area on Memorial Drive is not
centered between the fencing," Krugh said. "This makes one side more dangerous
because of the smaller safety zone."
"Someone could get injured," said Dee Krugh, his wife. She also raised
concern about the lack of sidewalks along Memorial Drive for those walking down
to the proposed skateboard area.
Ventresca questioned the quality of the materials used to refurbish the
Memorial Drive courts this summer compared to the existing Banksville Road
courts. The older courts were originally clay and, more recently, used by
rollerbladers and those practicing hockey.
"My issue is why are we moving the tennis courts," she said.
Although there was initial opposition to a plan to locate the skatepark in
the tennis court area on Memorial Drive, there is also opposition to taking out
the larger, newer courts on Banksville Road.
Keaney mentioned a conversation with Chris Blackwell, Penn Hills principal
planner, where he said he would not have ever put that municipality's
skatepark on a well-used recreational facility. (Though Penn Hills did build
the skatepark on former tennis courts, they had been unused and in disrepair
for a number of years. Blackwell is scheduled to attend the Nov. 14 Dormont Council meeting.)
The residents also raised the issue that if the Banksville courts are
eliminated, Keystone Oaks Band will lose the prime spot for its Christmas tree
sale that raises money for the band trips. The problem was addressed in the May
24, 2010 document, which states the band can instead use the basketball courts
or any level surfaces in the park, as well as using the Memorial Drive tennis
courts to hold trees should the skatepark be built.
The dog park is proposed for a tier above the Memorial Drive courts, on an
area where a gas line makes construction impossible.
Smith pointed to the discussions that proceeded the skatepark getting a green
light from council. Though talk of the park began in Oct. 2008, it wasn't until
the next summer that a proposal was submitted to council.
"It became clear to them (Pitcher Park group) and council that it needed to
be formalized," Smith recalled.
Opposition to the skatepark began just a few months after the proposal for
the park surfaced in 2009. A website, www.savedormontpark.com, though now out of date, was
established to challenge the park based on its location, visual impact,
sound/noise issues, environmental impact, size, maintenance and other
issues.
After public meetings and several council committee meetings to discuss the
pros and cons, council voted down the skateboard park proposal in November 2009.
But in April 2010, with new council members on board, the plan was approved by a
4-3 vote.
That vote was taken at a council meeting the Monday after Easter, according
to Smith, and was not well publicized. And, Ventresca said, the action item
missed the deadline to be placed on the printed agenda for the meeting, leaving
people in the dark until it was brought up from the floor by council.
Smith and Keaney both have concerns with the process. Smith wonders whether
the borough or the nonprofit skatepark group will have the final say about the
contractor and if it will be put out for bid since the equipment will be
donated.
Smith also has concerns about liability coverage, police coverage, lighting
for the park and whether the Pitcher Park group will be able to raise the money
needed for the project. He said council and the group have not given any
reassurances about those issues nor answered questions pertaining to them.
"The Pitcher Park people should be aware of what the process is, too," he
said.
The money should be raised before any work begins, Smith noted. He also said
that if "bad things happen" at the park and it would need removed, it would have
to be done at the borough's expense.
Ken Krugh said when the liability issue has been raised with council,
residents have been told it is covered under the borough's "umbrella" plan. But
he questions if that would cover the cost if someone is hurt.
Ventresca and Keaney suggested that traffic and feasibility studies should be
done prior to allowing the facility to be built.
Aesthetics are another problem with a skatepark at the entrance to Dormont
Park. Cindy Lucas raised the issue of graffiti creating a less-than-desirable
appearance and Dee Krugh noted that outhouses might need to be at that
location.
"We have a beautiful entrance now," Keaney said.
Councilman John Maggio, who was contacted after the meeting with residents,
said he's concerned that the Pitcher Park supporters have "never given a solid
answer to" some of the concerns raised by residents. He also doesn't agree with
the way the park was approved by council.
Maggio and some of the residents, while understanding Pitcher's desire to
memorialize her sons, feel that the sympathy people have for her situation is
overriding some of the issues the skatepark might create.
"They made their deal to get the vote through," Maggio said. "Some of the
women (on council) voted with their hearts, not their heads."
Part III of this series will appear on Patch on Friday, Nov. 11.
It will look at what is being proposed, the lack of recreation for teens in
Dormont and how those who support the park feel about it.
To view Part I, click here. To view Part III, click here.
Supporters: A Skateboard Park 'Would Benefit Everything'
Part III of a three-part series examining both the pros and cons of Pitcher Park, the proposed Dormont skateboard facility.
ByZandy Dudiak November 11, 2011
On July 15, 2008, former Dormont resident Mary Pitcher lost two of her four sons in a drowning incident at a reservoir in the Allegheny
National Forest. The young men, Stephen Pitcher, 19, and Vincent Pitcher, 21,
who grew up in Dormont, were avid skateboarders. As a memorial to the two
lives lost, their mother, now a resident of Scott Township, approached Dormont
Council about establishing a skateboard park and raising the money for its
construction. Since then, the proposed facility has been fraught with
controversy. This three-part series will look at existing skateboard
facilities in other municipalities, as well as examine the views of those
opposed to the creation of one in Dormont—and those who feel it would be an
asset to the borough.
Dormont has its share of recreational activities—the pool, basketball courts
for a pickup game, horseshoes for the older crowd, tennis courts, ballfields for
organized sports, walking paths and playground facilities.
But, those activities don't necessarily appeal to everyone. According to some
of Dormont's teenagers, unless they play an organized sport or it's hot outside,
there's nothing for them to do. And trying to do something other than sitting at
home playing video games gets them in trouble.
Skateboarding on Dormont streets or at a Port Authority stop or
junction is illegal. Shopping centers, schools and the tennis courts at Dormont Park are
all posted with "no skateboarding" signs—and some places include bicycles,
too.
"Everywhere I go, I get kicked off," said Tyler Black, 13, of Dormont, who
says he's even been told to get off the street with a skateboard in his hand as
he's walked along Potomac Avenue. He has friends who have been issued citations
with fines, which can be given for trespassing or disorderly conduct.
"We get tired of skating in the street and getting yelled at," said Nathan
McCartney, 16. "It's hard to find places to skate around here. They think all
skateboarders are all bad."
The teens say that they and their friends are often forced to wait until
night falls, and then use parking lots at businesses or the senior high rise
until they get kicked out.
And it's not just skateboarders. Ryan Dorsch, 12, who rides BMX bikes and
rollerblades, said he's treated the same way.
Black, McCartney and Dorsch think there's a solution to the issue—and that
solution is Pitcher
Park Memorial Skatepark, which Dormont Council approved in April 2010. The park,
within Dormont Park at the corner of Banksville Road and
Dormont Avenue, would also accommodate bikers and rollerbladers and keep all
three groups off the street.
"Enough is enough," McCartney said about the adult bickering that he feels
has hampered the project. "We need and want Pitcher Park, and I don't understand
why some people are so against it. It's not fair to us."
McCartney, who works at Kuhn's supermarket, said he and other skateboarders
respect their parents, teachers and police; work hard in school; do their
chores; and go to work.
"So, at the end of the day, with the little bit of free time we have, after
doing everything that we are supposed to do, told to do and is expected of us,
do we have to be told that what we want and love to do can't be done? All we
want to do is skate and have a good time. We have a right to do what we love
just as much as anyone else—and we also want to know that we have a clean and
safe environment to do it in. Why do some people think that is so wrong?"
Although skateboarding has grown in popularity over the past few decades and
many towns across the country have added skateboard parks to their recreational
offerings, there are no facilities in Dormont or its bordering
neighborhoods.
"There's nowhere for them to go," said Mandy Swartzwelder, a parent whose son
is among those targeted by police. "This skatepark is going to be a great thing.
It's a shame. All there is in Dormont is the wooden (playground) castle and
that's for little kids."
Mary Pitcher said the idea for the skatepark was an effort by family and
friends of her two late sons, Vincent and Stephen, who were avid skateboarders
and BMX bikers, to create something positive for the community from a
devastating tragedy.
"I have felt personally the discrimination that my own sons faced just trying
to find a safe, appropriate place to ride their bikes or skateboards in this
area," Pitcher said.
While some people opposed to the skatepark have legitimate reasons to
object, there are other adults who support the effort by Pitcher to
memorialize her two sons.
One of those adults is one-time Dormont resident Steve Aguzzi, associate
pastor of Mt. Lebanon United Presbyterian Church. His church,
which includes a number of members from Dormont, is considering starting a
skateboard ministry as an outreach for teens.
"When you have a lot of kids who don't have much to do in the community, it
makes for a very bad community," said Aguzzi, who was the church's former youth
pastor. "I understand the argument on the other side of it. Sometimes a
community is called to put their issues on the backburner for the sake of
children. Sometimes you have to pull together for a greater calling. There are
things greater than house values."
Aguzzi said a church leader he spoke with in California, where skateboard
parks are in abundance, "couldn't believe that there's a dispute." He said a
skatepark can be a community-building activity, a place for fundraisers, for
mentorship and character building.
"The goal of our organization was to donate a skatepark. Period," Pitcher
said.
But the nonprofit Pitcher Park Memorial Skatepark group found that wasn't so
easy—and, in fact, council rejected the proposal once before Pitcher appealed to
a new council, which voted in favor of the project.
The first plan was to place the skatepark at the site of the older tennis
courts on Memorial Drive, but after resident objections, it was designed to be
parallel to those courts but further away from homes. When that met with
objection, Pitcher said borough officials chose the Banksville Road tennis
courts as the best site with visibility and away from homes in an
already-established recreation area.
Borough officials also asked the Pitcher Park group to refurbish or replace
the existing basketball court along Banksville Road, and refurbish the tennis
courts on Memorial Drive, which was done this summer with the help of Mt.
Lebanon United Presbyterian Church, donations from Jim Jenkins Garden Shop and
professional assistance from a tennis contractor.
Grindline
Skateparks Inc. of Seattle, WA, has been hired to construct the
15,000-square-foot concrete facility. Grindline has designed and built more than
100 skateparks since 1990, according to its website.
"Their work is impressive," said Councilwoman Heather Schmidt, who voted in
favor of the skatepark along with councilwomen Kim Lusardi, Laurie Malka and
Joan Hodson. "It's beautiful."
The skatepark is to be built within a five-year timetable, Schmidt said.
After council granted approval, a legal agreement between the borough and
Pitcher Park was to be drawn up by the attorneys for both sides as a matter of
administrative protocol.
Schmidt said council specified that no construction could proceed until all
the money to fund the project was in place. As long as those terms are met,
Schmidt said, the skatepark should become reality.
"I don't think a new council would be able to come in and say, 'No, you can't
do it,'" she said, particularly since Pitcher Park has already spent money on
the project.
Even without starting work on the skatepark itself, Pitcher's spent about
$60,000. The park alone is estimated to cost between $500,000 to 600,000, which
Pitcher hopes to achieve through grants, in-kind services, donations and through
fundraisers, like the recent Dormont Dungeon. One donation of services came today
(Friday) from Keystone
Consultants Inc. of Carnegie, which agreed to provide a required
survey of the site at no cost to the Pitcher Park group.
The Pitcher Park group will also hold an escrow account to maintain the park
for 20 years after it is built.
After the park was approved, dissenting borough officials sent letters to New Sun
Rising, which provided the nonprofit umbrella status for Pitcher Park in the
beginning. New Sun
Rising dropped Pitcher's group, telling her they "couldn't handle the
dynamics of Dormont," she said. Councilman John Maggio, who voted against the
skatepark, said he sent one of the letters after "inappropriate postings, signs
and pictures she was putting out, including one of me as the Burger King
person," something Pitcher said she regrets doing.
Pitcher said she then had to pay out another $850 to file with the Internal
Revenue Service so the group could get status as a 501(c)3 nonprofit and a
509(a) public charity.
"The fact that the controversy is still occuring is stemming from a small
group of people in Dormont, even after their demands were met by moving the
initial design three times, away from houses, not taking away green space,
replacing a half basketball court with a collegiate-size court and refurbishing
tennis courts—with all this being done and the skatepark being built with no
taxpayer dollars," Pitcher said.
Hodson, who said she's in favor of any recreation in the borough, said a
masterplan for Dormont Park done in the 1990s actually included a plan for a
skatepark. Schmidt, a rollerblader and skateboarder herself, said she knows
firsthand the need for a safe place to do it.
"If you didn't play an organized sport, you didn't have anything to do," said
the Dormont born-and-raised Schmidt, adding that skateboarding tends to attract
more "artsy" and creative types of kids who aren't into organized
activities.
Opponents of the skatepark point out that it might attract people from other
communities. Schmidt said that she investigated the Banksville tennis courts and
found a lot of users were non-residents. The same is true for Dormont Pool,
which sells non-resident season passes.
Pitcher said opponents try to label her as an outsider because she now lives
in Scott Township, even though she raised her sons in Dormont, their father
still lives in the borough and she owns an antique shop on West Liberty Avenue. She's been met
with harassment, verbal attacks and has been made to jump through hoops as she
has tried to donate the skatepark to the community.
The controversy has gone beyond the objecting to the park—to where Pitcher
said people have attacked the character of all four of her sons, including the
two who died, on Patch posts and verbally in the community. She said it even
happened at public meetings, which is why she began to videotape all council
sessions.
The Save Dormont Park group posted photos of McKinley
Park's skateboard park to show graffiti as a potential issue. But former Dormont
resident Andrew Fetzko, owner of the Head Board Shop, a skateboard shop on the South Side,
said some of that graffiti was part of a contest at the Pittsburgh park
sponsored by Hater
Magnet, a hip-hop clothing company.
McKinley Park is in an urban area prone to issues such as graffiti—and he
points out that graffiti occurs everywhere. Because paint ruins skating
surfaces, it's not something done by skateboarders.
"To say this brings graffiti is absurd," Fetzko said. "It's a few absurd
people putting forth this proposition that juvenile delinquent gangs will move
in to Dormont. I just do not understand how a community that has so much like
Dormont doesn't see the opportunity. It would benefit everything."
Hungry and thirsty skateboarders would patronize the shops in the adjacent
shopping center, he said. So might their parents. And Dormont Pool would sell more passes as more people
gravitate to the skatepark.
In fact, not having a skatepark might actually lead to more problems. Without
an outlet that teens enjoy, the community might well find them "over the hill
smoking weed and drinking beer" out of boredom, Fetzko said.
"I understand some of these people want their private little park," Fetzko
continued. "It's time that we wake up. To think that every kid in America today
wants to play baseball, basketball or football is jejune. There has to be some
type of facility that's safe for the other 80 to 90 percent who don't excel in
or play organized sports."
To view Part I, click here. To view Part II, click here.
Related
Topics:Andrew Fetzko, Bmx, Dormont, Grindline Skateparks, Head Board Shop, Mary Pitcher, Mt. Lebanon United Presbyterian Church, Pitcher
Park, Pitcher Park Memorial Skatepark, and Rollerblades
Do you think the skatepark might cut down on the
number of juvenile problems by creating a safe place to gather and be active? Do
you think it would enhance recreational opportunities in Dormont by providing
another choice for children, teens and adults? Or are you opposed the the
skateboard park concept all together?Tell us in the comments.
Pitcher Park Plans On Pace With Project Deadline A spaghetti dinner and Chinese auction will be held Saturday to raise money for the proposed skate park.
By Candy Woodall | Email the author | March 17, 2011
13 Comments Section Sponsored By Nearly two weeks away from being one year into a five-year fundraising campaign to see a proposed skate park come to fruition, Mary Pitcher said the effort named in memory of her sons is still going strong.
Supporters of Pitcher Park will host a spaghetti dinner and Chinese auction at Mt. Lebanon United Presbyterian Church on Saturday, hoping to raise a portion of the $500,000 needed to fund the recreation area. Tickets are $7.
A previous fundraiser drew 350 people, and this time the all-you-can-eat pasta dinner will feature a bigger Chinese auction. Autographed hockey gear tops the list of items to be auctioned.
Alyssa Milano donated clothing from her team apparel line and signed a Pitcher Park T-shirt, Sidney Crosby signed 100 jerseys, and other team attire has been autographed as well.
Funded by donations and grants, and sought by Pitcher, a former Dormont resident who now lives in Scott Township, the proposed skate park was approved by Dormont council 4-3 last April.
The park is expected to cost between $300,000 to $500,000, depending on how many in-kind donations and materials are received, she said.
Raising $500,000 “would be nice,” she said. “We’d rather have more than less.”
Council gave Pitcher five years to have the funding and plans in place.
“They basically told us last year if you can raise the money, you can have the park,” Pitcher said. She declined to say how much has been raised so far.
Preliminary plans have the park occupying the space along Banksville Road where the tennis courts are located. Upon construction of the park, those courts would be relocated.
The park is named for Pitcher's sons Vincent, 21, and Stephen, 19, who drowned in 2008 while on a camping trip in the Kinzua Reservoir.
She has two other sons, Jonathan, 28, who lives in Scott, and Brady, 26, who lives in Castle Shannon.
As a mother of four boys who grew up in Dormont, she said there’s nowhere for kids to go in the borough.
“It’s illegal to skateboard in private places and in the street in Dormont. (Pitcher Park) will give kids a safe place to play,” she said.
Plans for the park have often been met with controversy, and the proposed location next to Dormont Pool is the third suggested designation.
“We moved the park three times because we listened to the voice of the people,” she said.
Money for Pitcher Park is also collected through the organization’s Web site, www.pitcherpark.com, which allows users to donate to the memorial fund through PNC Bank.
“My sons are dead. They would not be able to enjoy this,” she said. “This is for the kids of Dormont, this is so they have a safe place to go.
“As a mother who has lost children, I still instinctively worry every single day about my children. (Pitcher Park) will be a place for kids. It’s not a place for me to heal. I don’t know if I’ll ever heal.”
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