The proposed new Sports Center and Skate Park design sent out by the Rec District shows keeping one baseball field on the west, which has the wrong orientation with the sun in the batter’s eyes (which is dangerous) and is seldom used, and converting the other baseball field to the east to Skate Board Park on the north along the road, tennis courts, playground and basketball court. This sounds good, but most of these new uses are redundant or unnecessary: there is already a playground at Cooper Riley Park and there will be another with the new Elementary School, the tennis courts that used to be at Cooper Riley was seldom used (second only to the new Horseshoe Pit), and there is already basketball at the Rec Center. I believe that what is needed is more quality at the new Sports Center, particularly in the Skate Board Park, and less quantity of un-needed stuff.

The new Skateboard Park in the design is set up to be a typical one like everywhere else on the flat land along the road but could be unique if it was located against the hill to the south with terraces where skateboarders could walk up the hill a bit and skate back down. This would be a more natural approach to trick features like berms, valleys and pipes rather than artificially built into flat land. 

There is nothing wrong with having a big open space for free play in front of the Skateboard Park while shifting  the budget to having a better Skate Board Park that is GREAT instead of mediocre repeat of the typical. 

A planner at CDOT said they could supply dirt and rocks for terraces on the hill and a grant could be sought for the rest. This could help enable this great quality Skateboard Park! The City of Idaho Springs will hold a Master Plan presentation at 5 p.m.  Dec. 7 at Idaho Springs City Hall followed by a Planning Commission meeting on it. Please get involved in your community!