Jensen Park neighbors reject idea
By Brian Kelly
Herald Writer
ARLINGTON — Skateboarders have hit a rock on their way to getting a park of paved paradise.
Residents near Jensen Park are asking city officials to find a new location for Arlington’s first skaters’ park. Two dozen of them have signed a letter protesting the proposed location at the south end of the city.
Nearby neighbors say Jensen Park — a 2-acre property that now sports only a picnic area and a paved parking lot — should not be the location for the skate park because it will mean more traffic, litter and vandalism.
"Most of the residents down here are very concerned," said Joanne Wetmore, who lives on Louis Lane near the park.
"There’s a lot of young families down here with young children," she said, adding that the skate park will bring more traffic and safety hazards to the area.
The park should be improved, Wetmore said, but built with an emphasis on families with younger children. That might mean playground equipment, but not a skate park. Older teens using the park may frighten away other users, she said.
"With the skateboard facility, a lot of people won’t take their kids down there because they kind of intimidate people."
"Most of the people agree the kids need a facility," Wetmore added. "But they just don’t see it in a residential area. This is definitely a residential neighborhood."
Arlington has already set aside $100,000 for the skate park, but the location of the facility itself won’t be final for a few more weeks.
Arlington’s parks commission will hold a public meeting on the development of Jensen Park at 6:30 p.m. Dec. 11 at Kent Prairie Elementary. The commission is expected to make a recommendation on the placement of the skate park to the city council.
The Arlington City Council will vote on the master plan for the park at its meeting on Dec. 17, and decide if the skate park will be included in the development of Jensen Park.
Other cities in Snohomish County with skate parks, such as Everett and Stanwood, have largely avoided location complaints. Stanwood’s facility was put on land at Heritage Park, located in a largely undeveloped area at the town’s northwestern end. Everett’s is next to a softball field, which is noisier than the skate park.
The skateboard park in Snohomish, which will be finished in about two weeks, will be part of the youth complex next to the Hal Moe Pool. The first location did not have good pedestrian access, and the new site is almost surrounded by businesses, said Ann Caley, senior planner for Snohomish.
"We don’t have the residential concerns. In fact, we welcome the increased use in the area," Caley said.
In the world of skate parks, the biggest concerns aren’t broken bones or liability, but where the parks should be placed.
"The No. 1 issue and our No. 1 challenge is finding sites, by far," said Steve Rose, the owner of Purkiss Rose-RSI, a California company that has built more than 60 skate parks, including ones in Everett, Des Moines and North Bend. The company is also building the skate park in Snohomish and one on Whidbey Island.
Although many complain about loud crowds, noise isn’t much of an issue at skate parks, Rose said. Basketball courts and baseball fields are much noisier than the sporadic scraping or board-smacking sounds that come from a skate park.
But that’s not to say that other issues don’t exist.
"Litter and fast food have been an issue," Rose said. "These guys consume a tremendous amount of fast food, and they’re not real good at picking it up."
In Arlington, the skate park seems to fit best at Jensen Park. The city has 11 parks and three trail systems, and park planners considered a variety of locations for the skate park, said city administrator Kristin Banfield.
"When we went through the initial assessment, Jensen came out on top," she said.
"We looked at every piece of property the city currently owns. We looked at every city park the city owns, plus additional property the city owns," Banfield said.
The city considered location, property size and accessibility, as well as safety, zoning, access to public transportation and other factors before picking Jensen Park.
"You’ve got to put it some place," Banfield said. And the Jensen Park area has about 100 kids in the grades up through sixth grade.
"We need to make sure we provide a wide range of recreation opportunities for all ages. There’s nothing for the older kids to do, that’s what all the surveys say," she said.
You can call Herald Writer Brian Kelly at 425-339-3422 or send e-mail to
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