By Sheldon Spackman

Community conversation to discuss Sylvan Lake skate park

Sep 24, 2018 | 2:43 PM

Improving the skate park experience in Sylvan Lake is the goal behind an upcoming community conversation.

The conversation is slated to take place at the Sylvan Lake Skate Park on October 2 from 4:00-7:00 p.m. and aims to allow Town staff to learn more about positive experiences at the park and address any concerns such as inappropriate language, bullying or safety.

Mayor Sean McIntyre says they ultimately want to make sure the park is welcoming and inclusive for everyone.

“We’ve received a few concerns from residents in our community about behavior at the skate park and we think that the best way to address that is to have a conversation directly with the people involved and engage the people who are part of this skate park community ,” says McIntyre.

“Our staff are intentional about making sure that they are visiting the skate park periodically to make sure that everything is going well out there. We also do have video surveillance on our skate park, but really it’s about developing and fostering community there.”

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He says having this community conversation is an important aspect to finding a solution to the concerns brought forward.

“With an individual sport like skateboarding, BMX, scootering, the activities that happen at the skate park, we don’t have teams and coaches to talk to,” explains McIntyre. “We have individuals, we have families and parents and it’s important that we engage those people and talk to them about what our expectations are for a public, all-ages facility like the skate park. When we get to have those face-to-face conversations, those meaningful connections, that’s how things change.”

McIntyre says it’s unclear if the concerns brought forward are regarding a specific individual or ongoing activity.

“Before we were to take actions from an outside perspective, we need to make sure that we understand what’s happening there,” says McIntyre. “Who are the people involved and what can we do from the grassroots level to make sure that everything is welcoming and inclusive for everyone.”

He says skateboarding and BMX are activities he too has been involved with.

“They’re something that are both part of my history and my present,” he exclaims. “I was happy to help fundraise for this skate park before I got involved in politics, as was councilor Hanson who is on council with me now. This is something that is near and dear to our hearts and we want to make sure that any solutions that we’re going to try and implement are built-up through that skate park community.”

The community conversation taking place October 2 will feature free barbeque for those who attend.