Emerson Skate Park closing for renovations

GRAND JUNCTION, Colo. (KREX) — Grand Junction city crews will begin placing fencing around Emerson Skate Park on Monday in the first-of-its-kind collaborative project between local skateboarders and city officials.

Construction for a new skatepark begins Monday, February 26, and is expected to last through the summer. WesternSlopeNow spoke to a local skateboarder to find out what the renovations mean to the skate community.

“The skate community is without a doubt elated about the prospect of the new Emerson Skate Park,” Jax Blankenship tells WesternSlopeNow. “It is something we have been hoping for, for as long as I can remember.” The local skateboarder says he’s hopeful this new collaborative effort between the city and the skate community is the beginning of things to come. “We’re happy to finally see some cooperation between the City of Grand Junction and the skate community and hopefully this venture will last.”

Team Pain Skate Parks spearheaded a community engagement process in 2023. Community members submitted ideas for the new park online Team Pain’s redesign looks to incorporate fresh elements to the Grand Junction skatepark scene, including an expansive street course, an intermediate bowl and an advanced bowl.

Preliminary redesign from Team Pain

The city has capped the project contract at around $2.6 million with Ford Construction, with Team Pain as the skatepark builder, the Austin Civil Group for civil engineering, and Kaar Planning for landscape architecture. The preliminary redesign is subject to change, per Team Pain.

Click here to learn more about the project

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