Donor comes forward, skatepark a reality

POLSON — Right now it's just a big soggy field, but about three to four months from now it'll be a state-of-the-art skatepark.

Mark and Danyel Scott, owners of Dreamland Skateparks and Karen Sargeant, superintendent of parks, were present Monday afternoon during a ground-breaking ceremony — although the word "ceremony" might be an overstatement. There was no ribbon to cut, no speeches, just a man in a tractor putting a hole in the ground.

"No big ceremony. I just want to get this thing started," said Sargeant.

But breaking ground in April may not have happened had it not been for a recent $10,000 donation, putting them just a tad over their $100,000 benchmark. That money will now be supplemented with funds from an anonymous donor who promised a 2-for-1 matching grant last year, which will ultimately provide $300,000 for the project.

Sargeant received the $10,000 check last week from a Kalispell photographer who had photographed skaters and bikers in Polson and caught wind that they were raising money for a community skatepark. The photographer was so impressed with them that he was led to invest in their project.

"He said they were one of the nicest groups of kids he ever met," Sargeant said.

While the recent $10,000 donation, the anonymous matching grant and last year's $25,000 contribution from professional skateboarder Tony Hawk have moved the project along considerably, it couldn't have happened without support from the community. Alone, the community has raised about $75,000.

With that, Sargeant is making sure that a majority of materials (rebar, cement, gravel) used for the construction of the park come from local businesses. And she will use all local contractors, with an exception of the Dreamland crew.

"The community has been really supportive of the whole project, so we want to give back to the community that way," Sargeant said.

Dreamland was awarded a $291,000 bid, which will leave an extra $9,000 to be used for park amenities such as bathroom facility and benches. However, Sargeant is still looking for donations of materials to offset costs. Plywood, rebar, gravel, miscellaneous timber, anything helps, she said.

Sargeant and Dreamland are absolutely adamant that the park be free to use. There will be no charge for admission or membership fees.

"We've never built a park that charges" — that would defeat the purpose of providing a place for Lake County's extreme sports athletes, Danyel said. "We want to provide the best for this area."

Sargeant isn't the only one eager to see the field of ankle-deep muck transformed into a 12,000 square foot concrete skate and bike arena. The event is especially significant for the dozen or more members of the 7th Ave. Skatepark committee who have been campaigning and raising funds for the project since September 2004.

"We've been looking forward to this since they tore the old one out," said Issac Knudsen, referring to the large slab of concrete that was located on the corner of 7th Ave. and 7th Street where skaters and bikers placed their homemade ramps.

As for the Scott family, it's business as usual. For them, constructing skateparks is a family affair — traveling the globe, erecting park after park. The Lincoln City, Ore.-based Dreamland Skatepark Co. recently completed construction on the Whitefish skatepark and have built parks in Anaconda, Kalispell and Butte.

So how does Polson's skatepark compare with others around Montana?

"This will be a world class facility," said Danyel.

The park will accommodate bikers and skaters of all skill levels, she said, and "maintenance will be pretty much zero." Plus it will feature a "cradle." Invented by Dreamland, the cradle is an obstacle in which skaters and bikers can actually do a complete loop if they build enough momentum.

Danyel said that, though they've built parks all over the world, they've never seen a city official be so involved in a project like Sargeant.

"Karen has had a real strong involvement," she said. "To have a city representative be involved in this is amazing. It doesn't happen."

Also unusual is the fact that Danyel's husband Mark will be staying for the duration of the park's construction. Typically, he'll oversee the beginning stages, move on to another job and leave his crew to complete it.

"One in 10 parks, he'll stay the entire job," Danyel said. "This is really unusual for him to do this."

Mark and the Dreamland crew, which is comprised solely of skaters, will be working 10 to 12-hour shifts until the park is done.

"You have to be a skater to be on our crew. It's crucial" — after all, who knows how to build a skatepark better than skateboarders, Danyel said.