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Unprecedented Community Turnout for New Del Rio Skate Park
On Friday, April 12, 2024, the City of Del Rio held its first Community Input Meeting for the new Del Rio Skate Park. Members of the community were asked to attend and participate in creating clay models for their ideal skate park design. With 49 attendees - many of whom frequent the skate park - the turnout exceeded city leadership’s expectations.
What began as a discussion about adding more metal ramps to the existing park, has now become a full-fledged, brand-new skate park, thanks to the passion and persistence of the skateboarding community. Members of the Skate Park Committee as well as local skaters, came together at a City Council Meeting to push for a much-needed upgrade. Upon seeing the strength and organization of the skating community in Del Rio, the City Council approved funding for the design of a custom concrete skate park at the current location on De la Rosa Street. “All the guys showing up was a very successful endeavor,” Jake Carsten, Del Rio Parks Foundation Trails Committee Lead, commented on the impact of the city’s youth showing up and advocating for the new skate park.
After many setbacks, including the COVID-19 pandemic, the new skate park seems to be on its way to becoming a reality, beginning with the recent Community Input Meeting. “We had people from out of town, friends from Eagle Pass, come and show support," Trey Elias, a 16-year-old member of the skate park community, told us about the turnout. “It felt like a community, it felt strong, it felt like we were all together," he continued. Following this design meeting, the city council and its contractors, Skate Ecosystems, are currently consolidating design concepts with plans to begin the new skate park construction as soon as this fall.
“It feels like we’re behind the skate park, it feels like we’re behind the movement of it, and it’s just an overall great feeling,” Trey shared with us about how it felt to have a hands-on role in the potential new design for the park. Regardless of the final product, Trey is proud that he and his friends will get to skate in a park that they played a role in creating. Nikolas Escobedo, a 17-year-old member of the skate park community, told us that he believes the large turnout for the design meeting shifted the city leadership’s view of the skate scene in Del Rio. “It showed them that there is an actual community of skaters and friendships.”
Often overlooked and misrepresented, the skate park has served as a safe space and an outlet for Del Rio’s youth. “The park is my getaway, it's my second home,” Trey commented on the impact that the skate park has had on his life. “It keeps you sane, when you have nothing else sometimes, you have the skate park,” added Dain Ramirez, a 19-year-old skater, and friend of Trey and Nikolas. The three friends met through the skate park and noted that it’s not just a place to skateboard, it’s a community where everyone is welcome, and the place where some of their closest friendships developed. “No matter what, we’re still a community, we’re still all friends and everyone is welcome to skate,” Brayden Keller, 15 years old, and the newest addition to the group, told us about the environment of inclusion at the park.
“Personally, I’ve been fighting to see this realized for over two decades, and we’ve had a lot of attempts,” Ken Hayes, Skate Park Committee Lead, shared with us about the journey to getting a new skate park. “It’s been a long time coming to try and do it right.”
The next Community Input Meeting is tentatively scheduled for the end of May, where community members will get to vote on the next round of designs. The Skate Park Committee and the community of skaters are optimistic that the turnout for the next meeting will be just as big if not bigger, than the last.
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