March 13, 2009

Monument parking lot offers skate park option
By Mark Gibson
The Chronicle

     Officials hope that a move of 400 feet will make all the difference in the world when it comes to building and maintaining a safe, family-friendly skatepark at Thompson Park.
     A plan to site a skatepark at Upper Thompson Park, 400 feet north of its former, excessively problematic location behind Safeway, met no opposition at a public meeting to discuss the proposal Thursday, March 6.
     The new plan calls for building the park at the location of a gravel parking lot adjacent to the unfinished concrete base of what was once planned as a Lewis and Clark memorial. The memorial would not be moved.
     The location would be visible, easily accessible and easy to find, said Cassandra Mullins of the Northern Wasco County Park and Recreation District. No green space would be lost to the concrete park.
     “This location is pretty good,” noted The Dalles police chief Jay Waterbury. The city police are for this project, He noted. “I urge this community to get behind this, get this built.”
     “These (skaters) are the kids who will be leaders,” added Chris Kramer, who allows skaters to use the front of his church, located adjacent to The Dalles Wahtonka east campus, for skating. “I’m excited with what we are planning, this is going to be a piece of our future, for future Americans. A really good park is very fun to watch. They take turns, they keep it clean because you can’t skate on trash.
     An earlier proposal to cite the park at Howe Park, near The Dalles Middle School, was strongly opposed by residents of that neighborhood.
     A wooden skatepark, located out of sight behind Safeway, became a magnet for criminal activity and drug use because of its low visibility. That facility was removed several years ago, and skaters and the park district have been seeking a replacement location ever since.
     The current proposed location combines high visibility and good access to park amenities like water and restrooms with a central, easy-to-access location. The site was identified in a master plan of the full park, looking at anticipated replacement and expansion of the Thompson Park pool facility.
     No one spoke against the Upper Thompson Park location, with only one neighbor raising issues regarding trash along Mill Creek. The area of concern was not park property.
     It was noted that when the additional Mill Creek property was deeded to the district by The Dalles city, park employees and volunteers would maintain that area as well.