STANWOOD — A decade ago, a group of teenagers with the Stanwood Camano Community Resource Center helped lay the groundwork for a new skate park.
Now, a new group of teens are upgrading that park.
Working through the resource center’s Vito Z Skaters program, a group of 35 skateboarders raised $1,500 to install a new obstacle in the Vito Z Memorial Skatepark at Heritage Park in Stanwood.
“They did a great job, they worked hard,” said Christie Connors, executive director of the resource center. “There was some adversity along the way, and they overcame that.”
The new obstacle will be a long, concrete slab with a ramp on one end and steps with a railing on the other end. The teens met weekly for more than a year to plan this park upgrade. In addition to the money they raised, they also helped find contractors to supply free parts and labor.
Their goal is to upgrade the park with a new obstacle each year, Connors said.
“In order for them to see the fruits of their labor, they decided they’re going to do it an element at a time,” she said.
In 1997, youths at the resource center raised $10,000 for the construction of the skate park. Stanwood city officials said they would help pay for the park, but the city backed off when the park’s estimated cost exceeded $85,000.
Plans for the skate park were dramatically scaled back. When it was built in 2000, its cost was around $15,000. The plan was to upgrade the park as money became available.
It finally happened in May, when the Stanwood City Council approved the teens’ plan to add the obstacle.
“It wasn’t a slam dunk, but (the council) did the right thing,” Connors said.
Reporter Scott Pesznecker: 425-339-3436 or spesznecker@heraldnet.com.
Stanwood Camano resource center
The Stanwood Camano Community Resource Center, founded in 1992, serves residents of Stanwood, Camano Island, Warm Beach and the surrounding areas. The center provides a variety of educational programs, such as parenting, English and budget classes, as well as vocational training.
Vito Z Skaters, a group of teens working to improve the skate park, follows a curriculum called Teens in Action. The goal of the curriculum is to provide teens the opportunity to make a difference in their community. Working with adult mentors, teens move through the process of identifying, planning and implementing a community project.
For more information about the resource center, call 360-629-5257.
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