A ribbon cutting was held Sunday for the new Lawson Skatepark at Stanley Park near the Estes Valley Community Garden. More than 200 people attended the ceremony including several members of the Estes Valley Recreation and Park District board of directors.
The old skatepark, originally built in 2003 by the EVRPD and the Town of Estes Park with additional funds from the Sunrise Rotary, the Coleman Foundation of Chicago, and Great Outdoors Colorado, had fallen into disrepair.
According to Chris Layton, recreation coordinator for the EVRPD, there were screws sticking up, the transition into the ramps was really quick, and it was a hard course to learn on. “Our goal was to replace that one,” said Layton.
Construction for the new state-of-the-art skatepark began this past spring and was completed in late July.
The original skatepark was dedicated in 2013 to Barry Lawson, the first director of the Estes Valley Youth Center, who died in 2010. Lawson had been a champion of youth services and was instrumental in bringing the first skatepark to the town.
A dedication sign at the skateparks reads, “Under whose guidance the Estes Valley Skate Park was planned, built, and maintained by area young people. He spent his life befriending young people and leading them toward responsible adulthood.”
The cost of the new skatepark was $650,000. The majority of the funding came from the EVRPD.
The 10,000 square-foot park sits on top of the old asphalt basketball courts which had to be removed. Dirt from the roundabout at the intersection of U.S. Highway 36 and Community Drive was used to create mounds, which saved a considerable amount of money for the project.
The park was built by Artisan Skateparks, a specialty skatepark company headquartered in Kitty Hawk, N.C. and was designed by Pillar Design Studios, a landscape architecture firm located in Tempe, Ariz. that specializes in site-specific action sports designs for skate, bicycle, and motocross parks.
Brad Siedlecki of Pillar Designs came up with three initial designs for the community to choose from, a flat skate plaza design with a lot of ledges, a typical skatepark, and one with lots of bowls and transitions.
Siedlecki presented these designs at a meeting in the spring of 2023 at the Estes Valley Community Center. Attendees placed stickers on the features they liked which helped the design team in determining the final plan.
Sponsors for the ribbon cutting included Lithium 517, Satellite Board Companies, and Ian Spencer, owner of Driftwood Tattoo.
Tom Carosello, executive director of the EVRPD, welcomed everyone to the event, thanked sponsors and spoke about the history of the skatepark. Live music was provided by Marcus James and Jingle Jangle Jabroni, local Estes Park bands, and food was provided by WesTex BBQ and the recreation department’s concession trailer.
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