CALIFORNIA CITY, Calif. (KERO) — The new skatepark in California City is complete and ready for skaters, but because of the splash pad construction nearby the area is deemed unsafe.
- The new skatepark was supposed to open on Saturday during the annual Tortoise Days in Cal City.
- It could take up to six months for the splash pad construction to be completed.
- There has been talk of putting a fence up to separate the two projects so that the skatepark can be used.
BROADCAST TRANSCRIPT:
Skate or wait. Skaters in California City will have to wait for their new skatepark as the opening has been delayed. I’m Steve Virgen, your neighborhood reporter. The skatepark was supposed to open on Saturday, but for safety reasons it’s not fully ready.
“All of us were upset. The kids were even more upset because I couldn’t do the giveaway. We were all pretty mad about it.”
That’s Tony K. the founder of the non-profit Skate For Something and he’s been highly instrumental in the construction of the new skatepark in Cal City. He tells me he was ready to give away skateboards at the grand opening of the skatepark.
But a couple of weeks ago, he says Cal City police told him and a group of skaters to leave because the skatepark is deemed unsafe because of the construction of the splash pad nearby.
“They want me to put a fence up to get it open, but I don’t have the resources to do it,” Tony said.
Tony has been told how long it might take for the splash pad to be completed.
“Estimated six months. Minimum six months … for all this other garbage to be done. … Splash pad, whatever bathroom, parking lot. They’re over budget, nobody’s been out here working on stuff in a month, so who knows when it’s going to be done,” Tony said.
Tony has been wanting a skatepark in Cal City since he was a teenager.
“I’ve been working on it for over half my life. 27 years, not 47 years. To see it done is cool but for us to get kicked out and threatened to be arrested is not cool. But it is what it is. Skateboarding is still a crime, I guess,” Tony said.
The skaters in Cal City will have to be a little bit more patient. For 23 ABC, I’m Steve Virgen, your neighborhood reporter.
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