OJAI : Feasibility Study OKd for Skateboard Park

Ojai officials this week backed in concept the construction of a skateboard park for area youngsters, forming a task force to investigate where to build the facility and how to pay for it.

With about 40 skateboarders packing the council chambers Tuesday, the City Council unanimously agreed to form a committee made up of merchants, skateboarders and city and school officials.

The Ojai Parks and Recreation Commission started investigating the idea in December when the commission’s youth representative reported that area youngsters were starving for a place to ride.

Skateboarders at Tuesday’s meeting complained that they are forced to ride through streets and parking lots, and noted that many other California cities provide safe and widely used facilities.

“These kids need some place to skate to keep them, like, off the streets and stuff,” said 16-year-old Dylan Buli. He said skateboarding on streets and in parking lots has left him and his friends “rolling around the concrete and getting all bloody.”

Last spring, the city’s parks and recreation commission surveyed two local schools. At Matilija Junior High School, 46% of those surveyed said they would regularly use a skateboard facility; at Nordhoff High School, that number was 58%.

Commissioner Craig Walker said his review of skateboard parks in other cities found that liability was not a problem. He added that state law protects owners of recreational property in injury lawsuits provided that safety signs are posted.

Assistant City Manager Dan Singer has said that merchants from Ojai’s Arcade shopping area are displeased with skateboarders near their stores.