By Kyle Klause

Locals in Valdez were happy to see construction wrap up on the shiny, new and mold free fire station this summer. While the project was many years and controversies in the making, the new structure on Hazelet Street stands clean and proud with architecture that lends a modern aura with a fresh feel to the transition between the business center of town and the proximate neighborhoods.

When construction began almost 2 years ago some residents noticed that a prominent pair of features at the local skate park were removed and have been missing from the area ever sense. “Missing the mini ramps,” posted Ben Fagan to a Facebook group named “Valdez Skatepark.” The ‘mini ramps’ are a pair of 3 foot and 6 foot steel ‘half pipe’ features that were easily the most popular attraction to the Valdez skate park.

Removing the mini ramps was not originally part of the plan for the construction of the new fire station but as the project developed the need to place a sewage and electric utility dictated that the ramps be removed temporarily.

“I can’t skate for [Expletive] but I was starting to have fun in those mini ramps before they were taken away,” commented Casey Jefferies on the same post. His statement affirms a concept that is second nature to anyone with a skating background: Mini ramp halfpipes are easily the most essential and versatile feature of any skate park.

Skating came to prowess in the mid 1970’s when the rebel skaters of Santa Monica, CA started dropping into empty backyard swimming pools on four wheeled polymer decks. Those early sessions on the tight pool wall transitions enabled the infamous ‘Z-Boys’ to begin creatively exploring the true potential of skate boarding, the techniques they pioneered inspired the popularization of the sport that saw its Olympic debut in Tokyo this year. Mini ramps today are designed with more gradual and gentle transitions, making them easier to ride than the empty concrete bowls that birthed the sport. The ramps offer riders of every skillset, from never-ever beginner to the best of the best, a consolidated arena where they can develop and practice the critical flowing and balance dynamics of skating at speed. 

As the fire department moved into their new facility in mid-July, a thread formed in the Valdez Skatepark Facebook group pointing out that the missing mini ramps had not been replaced. Some observed that the missing ramps had been relocated to a lot near the dog park and looked like they had sustained significant damage during the process. No credible statement about what the plan was or if there was a plan at all to replace the features had been disclosed publicly. 

“Our plan at this time is to install the ramps back at the skate park, but our timeline is tenuous due to multiple factors out of our control. The community should be optimistic that, yes we plan to install ramps back at the skate park, and that if it is either the existing ramps or brand new ramps they will be in better shape than what was there before the ramps were pulled out,” responded Nicholas Farline the Director of Parks, Recreation, and Cultural Services for the City of Valdez when approached for comment. 

Nathan Duval, Assistant City Manager/Capital Facilities Director for the City of Valdez commented, “We received quotes to meet the procurement code requirements of the City Code to repair/rebuild the ramps. The decision at hand right now for Parks and Rec is how to best use taxpayer funds: Should we repair/rebuild the ramps or purchase/construct a new ramp or feature that is better suited for the area? We have approximately $10-20K that is available for repair or replacement as a result of other savings and unspent funds in the contingency [budget].” Nathan concluded by inviting interested parties to reach out and provide input on what they’d like to see. “We have somewhat of a blank canvas so long as we can make it fit in the budget.” 

Big picture, these types of situations will arise in any construction project, even more so on the scale of public works. Unfortunately, it’s difficult to obtain public input on absolutely every detail and situation that arises in such undertakings and as a community we entrust our administrators with the authority to react and resolve these types of problems as the come up. Although the general consensus among the park users seems to be that the old mini ramps were just fine, they are excited by the prospect of having new ramps and/or potentially other new features at the skate park… someday. 

On sunny days even now you can pass the skate park and find groups of kids, young and old, sessioning the spot. “I just don’t get it, how do you finish the whole fire station before putting the ramps back?” wonders Wyatt, age 10. “This is the second summer we haven’t had the half pipes,” adds his friend Steven, age 11. When asked if they were planning to contact Parks and Rec or anyone else at the city to give their input the kids replied quizzically, “Who? Dude, we’re in fifth grade…” and skated off.