Bowls, banks and flowing transitions were all ideas area skaters gave during a meeting Monday for the design of a new skate park planned on the Texas side.
About 20 people gathered at Kidtopia Park downtown to talk with city representatives, and Nathan Bemo, owner, designer and president of American Ramp Co., to tell him what they wanted included in the park's design.
"Thanks to the city for realizing what an investment this is going to be and appreciating that. We really want to make sure we get everything you guys are wanting from the get go," Bemo said. "I want to make sure everyone has equal say."
He spoke with each attendee individually, writing down their ideas while they discussed other skate parks and which elements they wanted to include in the one they would call their own.
Shon Foreman, who has been encouraging skating in the Texarkana community in many ways, including running a Facebook group dedicated to the sport, said there were lots of good ideas presented.
"I think a lot of us like the bowl and just having a concrete park," he said. Having the park be concrete and not prefabricated was a universal agreement among the attendees. "The bowl with banks and transitions-it all flows from one part of the park to another without having to stop. That would be good."
ARC will build the park for an estimated $244,500, funds for which will come from Community Development Block Grants in the city's current budget. The Texarkana, Texas City Council approved the park in March, with an estimated completion date of November.
Bemo said he estimates he will have the plans to the city in two or three weeks. He said he's built custom concrete parks before with ARC, which has parks in each state across the nation and a total of 2,500 skate parks around the world.
The idea for the skate park came from a community meeting, said David Orr, the city's community development director. It then gathered the interest of the council, which held webinars and informational meetings in November to see what the skating community wanted. This was the next step in that, he said.
"The thing we want to do from a city standpoint is we want this facility used," he said. "We don't know the ins and outs of this, so we really want your input. What would make this useful, what would make this a community asset?"
While Bemo was listening to her 7- and 10-year-old sons' ideas on quarter and half pipes, Jennifer Stevens said she's been looking for a place for them to skate.
"The kids have been so wanting this," she said. The boys have been interested skating for a while, she said, and even brought their boards with them to Kidtopia. The family moved here about five years ago she said, and the boys decided skating was a sport they wanted to pursue. When that happened, Stephens said she began looking for a local skate park and came up empty-handed. Until now.
"They're really excited about this," she said.
Kevin Kjellander attended the webinar and meeting in the fall and said he wanted a hybrid park that would flow into a street plaza, and possibly include pyramids and ledges.
"Once it is built," he said, "I guarantee you it's going to explode."
The project will be built in a single phase instead of three, which was in the original proposal. Several city projects funded with the CDBG were delayed so the park could be constructed in one swoop, Orr said.
Foreman said he thought the meeting went well, and was thankful to the city for getting all the money in one chunk instead of doing it in phases.
"I think it was great they did this," he said. "I'm glad to see as many people showed up as they did. I'm glad kids showed up-that's who this is for-to speak their mind."
Bemo said he also felt the meeting gave him great ideas on exactly what the attendees had in mind.
"I think it's really great, a really passionate group," he said. "They really know what they want to see in the park, and I appreciate their enthusiasm and input."
Ideas for the skate park can be submitted directly to Bemo at [email protected].