By Joseph Edgerton
Staff Writer

Ken Plourde, 15 grinds a rail at the brand-new New Boston skate park. “I’ve been here four or five times since it opened,” he said. “That’s the most I’ve been able to get here.” The park will officially open Sept. 11. (Joseph Edgerton Photo)

After four years of hard work, a group of determined New Boston skateboarders have their very own paved paradise.

Recreation Director Michael Sindoni said that the inspiration for the skate park at the New Boston Central School was fairly simple.

“ A core group of kids wanted their own place to skate,” he said. “They didn’t want to skate on curbs or in front of businesses anymore. There’s limited skating in town, so the park is needed and we’re glad it’s there.”

Sindoni said the park suffered a setback in 2004, as plans to put aside money for it fell through in a town vote.

“ It was really close at the March vote,” he said. “The plan was defeated by a margin of 36 votes.”

After working with the school board and the board of selectmen, the recreation department finally got approval to build the park, which is located in the parking lot at New Boston Central School.

“ We got approval to build a few years ago,” said Sindoni. “We decided on a location near the school because it’s in a central area of the town, and it’s near a phone and the fire department.”

He added, “It’s great that the school board was kind enough to let us build there.”

The skate park cost $30,000 to build; the equipment cost $20,000 and the fencing, paving and excavating cost the remaining $10,000. The recreation department purchased the apparatus from a Virginia company, Ramptech.

“ We got an extremely generous grant from Hillsborough County,” said Sindoni. “They reimbursed us for up to $18,000. The rest of the money came from fundraising and donations from the citizens.”

While the park has been scheduled to officially open on Sept. 11, it is available to the public and has been used extensively.

“ The hours of operation are from 9 a.m. to 30 minutes after sunset,” said Sindoni. “It hasn’t been open two weeks yet, and kids are there almost every day.”

Sindoni said that the park will officially open once a segment of fence is erected, some minor landscaping is taken care of, and a security camera is installed.

“ The kids are going to have to self-police the park,” he said. “They’ll have to keep it from being damaged. If anything happens, it’s on them.”

Sindoni also said that the park is designed for in-line skaters and skateboarders only.

“ It’s a good size, and there’s a good amount of equipment. The kids really love the park, although some wish it was a little bigger,” he said. “Unfortunately, if kids try to ride bikes in there, it’s going to cut down on a lot of the available space.”

Sindoni added that since the park will be up and running soon, there may be ordinances passed by the town council and selectmen to direct skating toward the park.

“ The community feedback has been positive so far,” he said.

It is unclear whether the 60-by-30-foot park will be expanded in the future, but Sindoni said that there is space available.