State-of-the-Art Skatepark

Location: 350 Gifford Street, East Falmouth
Applicant: Skatepark Association and Falmouth Together We Can, Inc.
Allocation: $185,000
Year/Article: November 2013, A39

In 2013, the Falmouth Skatepark Association (Association), under the umbrella of Falmouth Together We Can Inc., applied for and received $185,000 in CPFunds forpartial funding to create a $252,000 state-of-the art concrete skatepark adjacent to the existing Falmouth skatepark at Trotting Park off Gifford Street. The Board of Selectmen made available 6.93 acres (17,000 square feet) in Trotting Park, and the Association pledged the creation and maintenance of the skatepark.

At that time it was estimated, using national participation rates, that Falmouth had 2,500 year-round participants in skateboarding, a creative and individual expression of effort and skill for those who prefer individual sports over organized team sports. The existing skatepark is cramped and unsafe for multiple users, sports, ages and skill levels. Its asphalt surface is highly abrasive and has deteriorated badly. Since it was built, major advances have taken place in skateboard design and construction, and the Association intends to create a Falmouth skatepark drawing on these advances.

The new skatepark will make a significant addition to the recreation services in Teaticket and East Falmouth, areas targeted for expansion in these services in the Town’s Long-Range Comprehensive Plan because of demographic changes. It will be designed for skateboarding, in-line skating, BMX biking, and scootering and will be constructed of low maintenance high quality materials, primarily concrete with steel features such as rails and benches. The design layout allows simultaneous use by different sports without dangerous overcrowding. Modeled on a flow park design, it includes popular elements of both bowl parks and street plaza parks. The center of the park will have a shaded area with picnic tables. With no artificial lighting, the skatepark will be open during all daylight hours. The Skatepark Association will provide maintenance through a stewardship program.

At the time of CPFund application, the Association had received grants from the Cape Cod Five Foundation and the Woods Hole Foundation, as well as pledges for donated materials. In 2015, fundraising continued.

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