The 10-year Calgary Skateboard Amenities Strategy recommends approximately 270,000 square feet of future concrete skatepark development, spread over every quadrant. The sizes of the future skateparks will vary from small “skate spots” to larger “neighbourhood size” parks. These future parks will cater to every style and skill level of skaters; terrain will vary across the many parks.
The Calgary Association of Skateboarding Enthusiasts (C.A.S.E.) is excited about today’s announcement. “We’ve been working very hard for many years towards the goal of new facilities. This announcement confirms this goal will soon be a reality. This is great news for Calgary skateboarders and we’re looking forward to riding new parks in 2014,” says C.A.S.E. co-chair, Josh Etherington.
The actual number of parks has yet to be determined. However, over 25 communities have expressed interest in developing skateparks in their areas. C.A.S.E. will be working with Van der Zalm & Associates and City of Calgary Recreation to engage the local skateboarding community at a series of public input meetings beginning early 2014.
A copy of the 10-year Skateboard Amenities Strategy and a list of interested communities can be found on the C.A.S.E. website. Information on the public input meetings will be posted on calgary.ca as well as the C.A.S.E. website.
ABOUT VAN DER ZALM AND ASSOCIATES
Van der Zalm + associates inc. (vdz) is a full service Landscape Architecture and Development consulting firm with offices in North America and China.
Established at the turn of the millennium, vdz employs experienced, qualified, and registered professionals with a passion for their work. Their focus is parks and recreation. They enjoy a strong national reputation for our work in developing action sports facilities – skatepark, bmx, and technical mountain bike. They also work closely with communities to develop masterplans, urban parks, streetscape plans, water parks, and environmental projects.
Notable skatepark projects by vdz include: The Plaza at The Forks (Winnipeg, MB), Chuck Bailey Skatepark (Surrey, BC), Ed Benedict Skate Plaza (Portland, OR)
ABOUT CALGARY ASSOCIATION OF SKATEBOARDING ENTHUSIASTS
The Calgary Association of Skateboarding Enthusiasts (C.A.S.E) is a non-profit society which promotes skateboarding in Calgary by using the collective efforts of its volunteer members. Through this united effort CASE works to improve the accessibility and growth of skateboarding in Calgary.
Calgary, a city of well over a million people still has only one public skatepark. Edmonton has 10. This frustrating situation is set to change in a big way, as the Skateboard Amenity Strategy becomes a reality. The Strategy calls for 50 skateparks of various sizes, to be built in the next 10 years. Two candidates for City Council played crucial roles in getting the Strategy adopted, and CASE wants every Calgary voter to know about the contributions of these two candidates
Joe Connelly – Ward 6
Then Alderman Joe Connelly with CASE members at Go Skateboarding Day 2010
CASE first met with then Alderman Joe Connelly in October 2009 to discuss the bylaw prohibiting backyard ramps in Calgary. Unaware that he was breaking a bylaw with his sons’ ramp in their yard, Joe took up the cause of changing the archaic bylaw. When he drafted a proposal to change the bylaw, he was unable to find another council member to second the motion, which is required before a motion can be discussed or voted on.
Despite this setback, Joe worked hard to help CASE partner with the City to host a Go Skateboarding Day event that year. Go Skate Day 2009 saw roaming skaters monitored by the HAWC helicopter, pursued by Police on the ground, and numerous tickets issued. To avoid a similar scene in 2010, CASE and the City hosted a very successful event at Mills, which has been repeated every year since (the Go Skate Day flood forced cancellation this year).
In June of 2010, Alderman Connelly proposed that the City develop a skateboarding strategy, which would make Calgary more skate friendly. CASE encouraged every skateboarder and supporter of skateparks to email or phone the Mayor and Aldermen, asking them to support Joe’s proposal. The massive email and phone response was so powerful, that the strategy proposal passed unanimously on Go Skateboarding Day 2010! This was the birth of the Strategy now being put in action by the City.
Alderman Connelly ran for Mayor in 2010, losing to Mayor Nenshi, leaving a void in support for skateboarding at City Hall.
Gian-Carlo & his son, a future skateboarder! (carra4ward9.ca photo)
Prior to running for City Council when he was President of the Inglewood Community Association, Gian-Carlo Carra worked with CASE to find a location for an indoor skatepark. Gian-Carlo understands how popular and well used an indoor skatepark would be and still strongly supports the need for them in out city. Unfortunately the potential location Gian-Carlo found fell through when the property owner indicated they were would need the property, so sadly we still don’t have an indoor skatepark.
In October of 2010, Gian-Carlo was elected Alderman. The election win put Gian-Carlo in position to advocate for skateboarding in the City. With the loss of Joe on Council, Calgary skaters needed an advocate at City Hall, and Gian Carlo fit the bill and more. Over the past three years he provided critical leadership and behind the scenes advocacy that helped see the award winning strategy completed and approved, and now move toward realizing the dream of new skateparks for Calgary. Last year Gian-Carlo also stepped up to help CASE by narrating our I SKATE promo video.
CASE endorses these two candidates because they have both worked directly with us to support skateboarding and move plans for new skateparks forward. There are other members of the current Council who also support the Strategy, but we have not endorsed them because we have not worked directly with the other Councillors so we don’t have first hand understanding of their support for skateboarding.
Who you vote for is your choice, and that choice will no doubt be made based on other important issues, not only skateparks. In three years, Calgary has built powerful momentum towards building a network of skateparks in our city, and CASE wants to see that momentum continue. Please ask the candidates you are considering voting for what their policy is about “unstructured recreation opportunities”, the aspect of Parks and Recreation planning that concerns skateparks. Every vote for candidates that support the Strategy and building of skateparks, is important insurance that skatepark momentum will continue for the next four years.
The hours will be 3:30-7 Mon-Thursday (Oct 1-3; 7-10); 12:30-7 on Fridays (Oct 4 and 11); 10 am – 7 pm Sat-Sun (Oct5-6 and 12-13) and also on Thanksgiving Day (Oct 14).
The Province has launched a survey to learn more about sport and physical activity in Alberta. Although it can be debated whether skateboarding is a sport or not, it can’t be argued that skateboarding involves physical activity. Take the 5 minute survey and use the “other” and final sections to mention skateboarding.
From the Alberta Government site: “The Alberta Government would like to know your priorities for amateur sport in the province. Therefore, you are being asked to take the following survey which will demonstrate your sport priorities based on the following contexts:
-Physical Literacy
-Introduction to Sport
-Recreational Sport
-Competitive Sport
-High Performance Sport
-Sport for Development”
