COSTA MESA

At the urging of residents, the City Council will stew a bit more over the location of the skateboard park. The council recently voted 3 to 2 to reopen discussion on the park’s location, with Mayor Gary Monahan and Councilman Joe Erickson dissenting. The vote came after the newly formed Lions Park Assn. detailed the group’s concerns with locating the park there: drainage and traffic, loss of green space and displacement of park users.

Skateboarders at the meeting expressed disappointment, especially since the council was to decide whether to increase the consultant’s contract to prepare construction drawings. That action--and park construction--have now been put off indefinitely.

The Lions Park Assn. presented a list of alternative sites. Bill Turpit said the group had identified TeWinkle Park, Civic Center Park, Gisler Park, the Orange County Fairgrounds and property at Fairview Developmental Center as possible alternatives. Erickson said he was deeply disappointed at the council’s decision. “I think [Lions Park] was a good location,” he said. “I think some of the sites that were proposed had problems on the face of them.”