By Katie Ryan
The wait is almost over for local skateboarders. On Thursday officials held a sod turning ceremony for the city’s new skate park, marking the end of a seven-year wait.
Members of city council and the skateboard community broke ground on the highly anticipated 16,000 sq. foot project at the Common Wealth Centre, kick starting New Line Skateparks’ construction of the park over the coming months.
“It’s huge,” said Ian McCoy, chairman of the Lloydminster Skateboard Committee of the sod turning ceremony. “It’s a lot of work, but seven years later here it is, finally.”
Construction of the $488,000 project is expected to begin in the first week of August and be completed by October. Donations have helped to cover the cost of the skate park, including Harty Developments.’ As gold sponsors, Mark Harty donated $50,000 to the project and will be the title sponsor for the next 10 years.
“We are very fortunate to have a corporation of his type to step up and support the community,” said Corwin McCullagh director of parks and recreation, adding silver and bronze sponsors are needed to help out with others costs that are involved with the project.
The local skateboard community raised over $38,000 through independent fundraising for the project as well. Once finished, McCoy expects the number of users of the skate park will increase significantly.
“The old skate park really wasn’t big enough, it was a rough surface – I could see the number  tripling with this new park,” he said. “It will be busy all day long from morning until night, so it will be a well used facility for sure.”
McCullagh said dry weather is needed in order to prepare the ground for construction first.
“We are going to have to move a lot of clay in here to bring it up to grade to make sure the drainage is taken care of,” he said. The yet to be named skate park will boast a modern plaza, obstacle and transition/bowl elements in a site specific double arm configuration and is intended for not only skateboarders, but in-line skaters and BMX riders as well.
“Things like this, like the skate park enhances the brand of Lloydminster. And if we want to be the city that I know we can be, realize the potential that we know we can realize, we need to make sure that we have a brand that is strong and components to the brand are things like the skateboard park,” said Mayor Jeff Mulligan. “It’s been a long time coming, but for me it’s just a thrill to enhance the brand that we call Lloydminster.”