The Skatepark grand opening was a huge event - coinciding with the opening of the new 4 pad arena. Bands, rides, food, celebrities, etc, were all overshadowed by the presence of 500 skaters and bmx'ers and one brand new skatepark... not to mention the countless spectators who watched the demo's put on by SUD Skates and West 49. To commemorate the event we made 200 limited edition t-shirts that were given away (in about 30 seconds!). The skatepark part of the festivities was sponsored by SUD Skates, West49 and Etnies Footwear. All in all a great time was had by all - and we'd like to give a big shout out to everyone that showed up to support the new park.
from SUD's - turn right on McGuire St then left on St. Paul St West...follow about 1km - as soon as you cross Louth Street (Tim Hortons on the right) start looking for the 1st entrance on the right past Timmy's
We first approached City Council to try and partner with the City to build a park back in 1989. Even though we had alot of support from Mayor McCaffery - it was turned down. 5 years later, the City passed a by-law to ban skateboarding in public, and we fought to have the ban apply only to a 4 block downtown core. We again petitioned the City for a public park, and again it was turned down. Jump ahead to 2001 - The St. Catharines SkatePark Committee was formed by Kathy Huckla (Moldenhauer), City of St. Catharines Recreation Supervisor, and Sean Wynn, a Niagara College student. The Skatepark Committee partnering with SUD Skates, organized events, fundraisers, logo's, t-shirts, a website, etc - all directed towards "The Cause"...a high quality, superior designed, concrete skatepark for the skaters of St. Catharines. Attending almost all of the meetings from the start was Carol Disher, a member of St. Catharines City Council (St. Patrick's Ward), and a strong supporter of the skatepark. She provided the committee with valuable advice regarding city procedures. 4 years later the dream of a skatepark finally became reality!
On behalf of the skateboarders of St. Catharines, SUD Skates would like to give out a BIG THANKS to Kathy, Sean, Carol Disher, Mayor Tim Rigby, St. Catharines City Council, former Mayors Joe McCaffery and Al Unwin, ...and to everyone that attended all the meetings, raised money, volunteered their time + efforts - THANK YOU ALL!
