Without a doubt, the beauty of 600,000 gallons of water per second at the Niagara Falls is a natural wonder of North America. Sadly, for the City of Niagara Falls, New York, this tourist attraction and source of hydroelectric power wasn’t enough to sustain prosperity. Since the 1960’s, the City experienced consistent economic and population decline as manufacturing industries dried up.
Led by Seth Piccirillo, the City’s Director of Community Development, an effort is underway to transform Niagara Falls into a modern and youthful place to live. The Hyde Park Skatepark quickly became a central component of the revitalization campaign, at which point Seth turned to the professional skatepark designers and builders at Spohn Ranch for help.
Our first step was hosting a public design workshop where Niagara Falls skateboarders could express which features and style of skatepark design they wanted in their community. The workshop revealed a consensus for a well-balanced layout with both street and transition-style terrain and clear flow, meaning no crisscrossing traffic patterns that could lead to collisions. Additional requests included a mini-ramp section and a section with flat ledges and manual pads reminiscent of downtown NYC’s plazas. Lastly, the community requested an iconic element which came to fruition in the form of skateable “NF” letters.
On October 6th 2016, the brand new Hyde Park Skatepark held its official grand opening ceremony with the beautiful backdrop of Hyde Park Lake.
Now Western New York’s premiere skatepark, the facility has both locals and out-of-towners excited. Even Canadians are crossing the border for a taste of the fresh concrete, including Kingshit Magazine staff photographer Will Jivcoff and amateur skateboarder Max Fine – seen in the photos above and below.
The Hyde Park Skatepark proves yet again why municipalities vote Spohn Ranch as the number one skatepark builder in the world.
