Friday September 21, 2001

The X-Games meet the YMCA as new skate park opens

Attention all illegal skateboarders: refuge is here! The Ott Family YMCA has built a skate park to battle the current epidemic of too many skateboarders and not enough safe, legal land in which to conduct their affairs.

University of Arizona Police Department officer Joe Mayerle said the university frowns on skateboarding on its campus. This is obvious for legal reasons. If a skateboarder is seriously injured on the UA campus, a skater could file a lawsuit with the school. That is why there are so many "No Skateboarding" signs on the campus.

Mayerle said it would help out the police force greatly if the UA decided to erect some kind of safe haven for skaters.

"We get numerous calls on them (the skateboarders) daily," he said "The skater's complaint is that they are not doing drugs or drinking - they are just skating."

Olivia Groah of member services at the Ott Family YMCA said the demand was high for a skate park in Tucson. According to Groah, there was an older public skate park in Tucson, Reed Park, but it was severely abused and torn up by locals. Groah said the demand for a skate park was so high that skaters used to come into the Ott Family YMCA's roller rink and skate around the rink, damaging the floor.

"The skate park was pre-granted to the YMCA board a couple of years ago - our employees just followed through," Groah said.

Public desecration of this park should also be cut down, since there is a $8.50 to $10 cover charge, but Groah is quick to point out that admission to the skate park also grants the participant full access to the Y's facilities for the day, which includes a weight room and aerobics classes. The threat of vandals is also cut down because the new park is fenced in and fully supervised.

"Basically the point of the skate park is to get kids off of the streets," Groah said.

For the opening of the skate park, the YMCA enlisted the support of local store Zia Record Exchange for help getting the word out, as well as helping supply live entertainment for the opening.

Maria Vassett, in charge of promotions for Zia records, said the YMCA called Zia originally looking for gift certificates and help with the event, but it did not stop there.

"We ended up turning the opening into a huge event," Vassett said. "We called KMFA, set up local bands and called record labels."

Vassett added that Zia wants the event to be special because it is for such a great cause.

Berna Romero, manager of Zia Records on Speedway and Pantano, said that since 50 percent or so of the kids from the area of the skate park are from economically challenged families, the park will be a great sanctuary and safe environment. She said all forms of music will be represented at the opening, from ska-punk to hardcore to hip-hop.

"None of the bands are getting paid," Romero said. "They are just doing it for the event."

The Ott Family YMCA will hold the grand opening of its new in-ground skate park this Saturday with the ribbon cutting at 2 p.m. and festivities running until 8 p.m. The day's events include raffles, demos, open skating, product giveaways and a slew of musical acts.

Bands scheduled to perform include Gat-Rot, Elemenopees, Chango Malo, Hermie, D.J. Bonus and more. The day is free to the public. The YMCA will accept donations of skate products for the community's financially needy children, including inline skates, skate pads and skateboards. Additional donations will be accepted to help get a water fountain or a ramada put in the park to help the kids beat the heat in the best way an open-air, concrete environment can provide.