Money to get skate park rolling approved by councilors

LACONIA — The City Council has authorized the city to spend $100,000 to design and build the first phase of a skate park.

The action came on a unanimous vote to design and build the concrete facility for use by skateboarders, as well as BMX and kick-scooter riders. The park will be built at the south end of Opechee Park.

“I would like to see a safe place for the kids to enjoy the sports they love,” said local resident Dan Lasata, who is working to organize a nonprofit organization to help raise money for the new park and defray the ongoing costs for its maintenance.

City Manager Scott Myers said the $100,000 would come from reserve funds set aside for non-capital expenditures.

Construction of the entire skate park is estimated to cost $170,000 if it is built all at once, or about $210,000 to $220,000 if it is constructed piecemeal, city Recreation Facilities Director Amy Lovisek told the council.

The council is expected to get a more precise estimate of the entire cost at its Oct. 13 meeting.

The cost to construct the park does not include fencing and lighting. Lovisek said that work would be done later and that the money raised by the nonprofit group could be enough to cover that expense.

Councilor Mark Haynes said he was concerned that adding the skate park to Opechee Park would make for a tight squeeze.

“I’m concerned about putting too much stuff into Opechee Park,” Haynes said.

The skate park would be built where the Opechee Park Clubhouse formerly stood. The clubhouse was closed 10 years ago after it was found structurally unsound. It was demolished the following year.

The 20-acre park already contains a running track, baseball diamonds, a playing field for soccer and field hockey, and two beaches.

Lovisek said Opechee Park was chosen as the location for a skate park because of its high-visibility location, and  because it would be further away from residential areas than it would be if built one of the city’s other parks.

Work on the park could begin this fall, and riders could use those features which are completed before the end of the year.

The plan for the new park is the result of conversations Lovisek has had with adults and teenagers who have offered ideas about the materials, features and location for the new skate park.

The city has been without a skate park for four years, when the facility next to the Laconia Police Station closed because it had fallen into disrepair and had become unsafe.