The shop has a friend in Picayune named Tristen who’s been fighting for a skatepark… he sent us this letter to announce an upcoming meeting, if you can attend, PLEASE DO:

The goal of this project is to build a good concrete skatepark in the Picayune area. Building a skatepark in our community can have great effects on the local youth: It gives them a safe environment to skate in and helps keep them off the streets. We build basketball courts, baseball, and soccer fields for our youth; why not build a skatepark as an alternative to traditional sports? Not all youth are interested in these sports.

In 2002, there were about 16 million skateboarders and an estimated 400 public skateparks in the United States. That number is up from 11.5 million skateboarders in 2000. Incidentally, in 2000, there were only 9 million Little League baseball players in the U.S., yet most cities with multiple baseball fields had yet to build skateparks. (© TransWorld Media 2001.)

Local youth should have the option to participate in whatever sport they choose and be provided with a safe environment to do so. Skateparks are being built worldwide to accommodate the needs of the local skateboarders. A skatepark in our area can draw people to the city, allowing for them to use our shops and restaurants; therefore, more money would be brought into the area. Cities have put money aside little by little in some areas to help pay for their local parks. Local youth can hold car washes and fundraisers for money needed for the park. Police can drive by and check on the parks regularly to help maintain adult supervision. Vandalism of the park will not be tolerated; have the same consequences as for any other public recreation area. Drugs will not be tolerated and will be dealt with as in any other circumstances.

City Council meeting is on Tuesday May 15th 6:00p.m. City Hall – 815 N. Beech Street in council chambers. Please come and support the local youth.