Carolyn and Peter Lynch Support the Charles River Skatepark

On Friday, March 23rd, 2007 between 4:30PM and 5:30PM, Peter and Carolyn Lynch will visit the site of the future Skatepark under the ramps of the Zakim Bridge in Cambridge. They will speak to the benefits the skatepark will bring to the city and the region for athletes, observers, visitors, and businesses. Their foundation, the Peter and Carolyn Lynch Foundation, has donated $100,000 to the skatepark.

Since 2004, the Charles River Conservancy has spearheaded efforts to build a $2.3m, 40,000sq ft world-class skatepark along the banks of the Charles River as part of its mission to make the parklands more attractive, active and accessible.. The park will be the largest facility of this kind in New England and will attract skateboarders, in-line skaters, and BMX bikers from across the region.

Over $1.2 million has already been raised: $300,000 from public sources, $450,000 from foundations, $450,000 from individuals, and the remainder from corporations.

The Charles River Skatepark will place Boston on the map as a destination for extreme sports enthusiasts. Similar facilities in cities such as Louisville, Kentucky and Milton-Freewater, Oregon have attracted tourists from neighboring towns, states, and even internationally.

Skateparks not only attract skateboarders, but they can also be a draw for non-skaters. Families of athletes as well as observers will be interested in visiting Boston as a result of the park. Teens will be requesting that their parents bring them to skate and while the kids are skating, parents can shop or visit cultural attractions such as area museums.

In addition to increased tourism revenues, the Skatepark will also attract new businesses to Boston. Larry Meehan of the Greater Boston Convention and Visitor’s Bureau believes that, “[The Skatepark] is going to end up generating all kinds of other interest. This is going to attract the attention of Reebok, of Pepsi, of Coca-Cola, of Nike. There's going to be other people that are going to want to be next to this project.”

Parks across the country have shown that they not only attract businesses, but they can also revitalize neighborhoods. For example, in the previously depressed neighborhood of Butchertown in Louisville, KY, new businesses have sprung up around the skatepark and existing shops in the area have also reported an increase in business.

With the new skatepark, Boston can optimistically increase its share of the $1.4 billion in annual retail sales that are generated by skateboard-related products in North America.

Marquee events such as the X Games will also attract ‘extreme’ sports dollars. The X Games began in 1993 and today has grown to attract 234,950 live spectators and over 63 million viewers on ESPN, ESPN2 and ABC Sports.

The Skatepark will also provide a much-needed venue for young people to practice their talents. Skateboards can cause damage to public areas and create hazards for pedestrians. Thus, the skatepark will limit skating in public parks and/or commercial areas by providing a legal and safe environment for skating enthusiasts.

The development of this parcel of land also represents an innovative use of space that might otherwise become an abandoned eyesore. With its location being 70% under the highway ramps, trees and grass were not an option for this site. With careful planning and design, the CRC has taken this ‘waste’ space which would also have been hard to maintain and envisioned it into a safe, active space for local youth to enjoy and for tourists to visit.

Community Benefits of the Skatepark:

• Attract national and international attention to the city of Boston
• Potential to be used in extreme sports competitions, which will bring in tourists and sponsor revenue
• Make the city more attractive to young people and limit the exodus of young people to suburbs and other states
• Attract more students – increased enrollment in universities and community colleges (skateboarders are future entrepreneurs)
• The Skatepark has the potential to become a community center without walls as it can serve as a resource for other artistic endeavors such as ballet performances, etc.
• Attract extreme sports businesses, as well as growth in high tech and graphic design companies (this was seen in Philadelphia, where several of these types of companies were founded by skateboarders)
• Crime prevention – in places like Louisville, KY, crime has gone down in the neighborhood where the skate park was built and which is used 24 hours (the Charles River Skatepark will also open 24hrs)
• Attracts programming related to the skatepark for after school and summer activities
• Attracting new business to the area (a BMX shop has already opened in anticipation of skatepark construction). MTA development next to skatepark will include public amenities and spaces of public accommodation (Chapter 91 requirement)
• The land is unsuitable for planting or parklands – the skatepark is an innovative use of land that could otherwise become an eyesore or even attract undesirable activities
• Louisville’s Mayor, David Armstrong, who built the successful skatepark has since become a skatepark consultant working nationally to help cities link skatepark construction and economic development

Further Contacts:

For more information on the skatepark:
www.charlesriverskatepark.org

for more information about the Charles River Conservancy
www.thecharles.org

Katie Everett
Executive Director
Lynch Foundation
katie@thelynchfoundation.com
617-753-6490

Larry Meehan
Greater Boston Convention and Visitor’s Bureau
617-867-8275
lmeehan@bostonusa.com

David Armstrong
Former Mayor of Louisville where he built a skatepark
Now consultant for cities who want to build skateparks
dla@gdm.com
502-542-9262

Jarrett Barrios
State Senator
JBarrios@senate.state.ma.us
617-722-1650