Oxford skate park closes, receives backlash from community

Miami students and community members alike have been using the skate park next to Oxford Commons for 24 years. But on Sept. 30, it shut down and will be replaced by pickleball courts.

Chad Smith, director of Oxford Parks and Recreation, said the decision was made due to a decrease in skate park attendance and structural concerns with the current park. The park is made out of wood, a material that has an estimated lifespan of 7 to 12 years. He said the deterioration of the park has been exacerbated by the use of bikes and scooters, when its primary purpose was for skateboards.

“[The park] has outlived its lifespan and is being used for a purpose it's not intended for,” Smith said.

Smith said professional assessments have revealed significant structural damage, and the skate park has been recommended to be replaced with a concrete park with additional amenities for bikes and scooters.

Assistant City Manager Jessica Greene said the city will apply for a community development block grant on Oct. 21 to get funding for the replacement skate park.

The city plans to construct pickleball courts in that location to meet current community demand. Smith said the conversion will cost an estimated $20,000.

Enjoy what you're reading?
Signup for our newsletter

This decision has been met with community backlash; a change.org petition aiming to keep the park open has received more than 600 signatures.

Kayla Stewart, a community member who started the petition, said the park provides an important place for members of the community to exercise and spend time together. The loss of the park would leave Oxford residents without a space to safely learn how to skate and connect with other skaters.

This sentiment is shared by other members of the community, like Oxford resident Tara Pitts, who emphasized the importance of a dedicated space for skating in building a community.

“It’s a community I didn’t have back home [when I was younger],” Pitts said.

Oxford resident Mark Walsh has been skating for 17 years and worries about how the loss of an important space will affect those who can’t drive to another skatepark.

“I skate four times a week; it’s my exercise. It’s my therapy,” Walsh said. “You’re going to take away the spot [people] hang out alone or hang out with friends in.”

Some skaters took issue with the decision to replace the park with pickleball courts.

“I think that kind of sucks,” Tony DiFiore, a sophomore organizational leadership major, said. “There’s already other places to play pickleball.”

Smith responded to community concerns during two community input sessions on Sep. 29 and Oct. 2, insisting that he is not anti-skateboarding and that he aims to view the issue objectively. He said the decision to build more pickleball courts is because of high interest from residents of all ages who want to play the sport.

He also said he wants to build a skate park out of industry-standard concrete in the future. Several community members suggested keeping the current skatepark open until plans for a new skatepark are finalized, but Smith said he views such an action as unsafe.

“I just can’t see keeping it open [as responsible],” he said.

The Parks and Recreation Department previously sought a $300,000 grant to restore the skatepark, but it was unable to secure funding. Smith said he hopes that with more specific plans to build a more modern skatepark, the city will be able to gain the funding to do it.

The closest skate park to Oxford is a 15 minute drive away, leaving some community members like Pitts to wonder if skaters will move to sanctioned areas, such as local trails or Miami University buildings.

“When I was a kid, we skated in parking garages,” Pitts said.

Oxford Mayor William Snavely said he supported the first installation of the skate park in 1999 to provide spaces for every Oxford resident to exercise and socialize.

“It remains a priority for me that we have a skatepark,” Snavely said during the Sept. 29 input session.

There is currently no estimate as to when demolition will begin.

pfennikp@miamioh.edu