Skateboarding Site Proves Tough Move to Land

Residents, businesses and the City Council support the idea of constructing a skateboard park in Stanton, but city officials haven’t yet found a suitable location for building one.

The city owns no vacant land it can dedicate to a park, which skateboarders badly want so they can practice their tricks without annoying neighbors and business owners. Instead, officials must turn to public and private agencies with vacant land.

Officials identified their first choice for a park--the Stanton Municipal Tennis Courts on Western Avenue--in February. The city leases the site from the Savanna School District and officials proposed converting two courts into a skateboard park. But the school district vetoed that thought, saying they may need the land for their own uses later.

The next best hope for a skateboard park is Stanton Park. The city leases the grounds from Southern California Edison, and City Manager Terry Matz said the site has potential as a skateboard park’s future home.

Residents of some cities have raised concerns about the health risks posed by exposure to the power lines. Scientists for years have debated the validity of those fears.

But Matz said he knew of no evidence that they pose any real danger.

“Cities have continued to operate park facilities without negative results. We feel pretty comfortable that things are fine,” he said.

Edison has said the city must build the skateboard park 10 feet away from points directly under the lines. That leaves an area already taken up by playground equipment. Because of the constraints, the skateboarding area would most likely take on a long, narrow shape.

The city has gone as far as hiring an architect to put together a preliminary design so Edison can evaluate the city’s proposal.

Officials said they’re still determined to find a suitable site if Edison turns the request down. But no other obvious options exist right now, admitted Matz. “If they say no, we’ll continue to look at alternatives. But the best solution is Stanton Park,” he said.

Judy Silber can be reached at (714) 966-5988