Courtesy photo Kate Lewis
SOUTH PORTLAND — Those excited about a new local skatepark can look forward to a fundraising “jam” event on Aug. 29 at the South Portland Community Center parking lot.
The Community Center is located at 21 Nelson Road.
From 3 to 6 p.m., residents can enjoy music, see a mini-ramp demo, participate in kids’ activities, a silent auction and more, said Councilor Kate Lewis, the council liaison for the ad hoc Skatepark Committee, in an email to the Sentry. The event will take place across the street from the city’s proposed skatepark.
The purpose of the evening is to raise awareness for the skatepark project that is currently in the fundraising stage, said Lewis. In 2020, the city secured a location for a proposed skatepark, High School Park, which is at the corner of Nelson and Mountain View roads.
The winners of an online auction featuring hand-painted skateboards by local artists, will be announced at the event, said Anthony Johnson, recreations operations manager.
The project for a South Portland skatepark started in 2017, with Emmons Whited, at the time a Mahoney Middle School student, approaching the council with the idea, Lewis said.
Pillar Design Studios, hired in 2019 through a grant and the city’s Capital Improvement Fund, completed a design for the park in 2020, and the estimated cost for the project is $500,000.
“We received $337,500 in CIP money from the city in 2020, with the Skatepark Committee tasked with fundraising the remaining amount,” Lewis said in an email.
Since June, the Skatepark Committee has been fundraising, having raised about $60,000 so far, and the project now has accumulated $400,000, she said.
“We have also approached businesses separately for park sponsorship, and received a few donations from banks and others,” Lewis said. “We continue to approach many, many businesses for support and are confident that that support is growing.”
The project has not gone out to bid for construction yet because fundraising needs to be closer to the $500,000 goal, she said.
“We will be working diligently to raise money through December, when I expect we’ll reach our fundraising goal,” Lewis said.
To participate in the online auction, visit charityauctionstoday.com/auctions/SoPoSkateparkArtAuction-24767. To donate to the project online, visit 4giving.com/donation/29AE.
A rendering of the design of the proposed skate park in South Portland, which was approved for High School Park, located on Nelson Road. Fundraising for the project has begun. Courtesy photo Anthony Johnson
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