When I was in high school, a friend of mine was on a Youth In Government group and bright kids from all of the high schools in town all spent an evening or a week or two playing municipal government.
All of the kids were city councillors and one student was the mayor and they all voted on issues relevant for students and teens in Prince George.
I was not a part of the group (and in retrospect, I was likely miffed that I was not one of the chosen few) but my friend brought back the minutes from the meeting and I read them. One of the items up for a vote - and please keep in mind that this was 20 years ago - was a skateboard park for the Hart.
Twenty years ago, it was defeated by a bunch of kids from around town, for fake budgetary reasons. As of last weekend, more than 20 years in the making, it has finally happened.
I have been following with glee the news stories about the opening of the skateboard park in the Cpl. Darren Fitzpatrick Bravery Park.I love the fact that kids around the neighbourhood were so stoked about the park that they kept breaking in - not to wreck things - but to play in it.This is a playground and kids were breaking in order to play on it.
I remember when I first became aware of talk in the Hart community about the need for a skate park.
Back in the 90s, skaters were a visible, thug-like group and largely misunderstood.Their pants were baggy and they had big chains attached to their wallets that would hang down to attract attention.Their thick-banded undies hung out the top of their pants and they walked with an affected sway.
I have never been able to stay upright on a skateboard for longer than 45 seconds but I understood the appeal: the skaters seemed cool.
There was a vocal anti-group against the skaters because they were the "bad kids" and no one cared enough about the bad kids to build them a playground because the "bad kids" would hang out there.
Well, short-sighted silly people, have you ever thought that it is, in fact, ideal to have a community gathering spot to be able to attract the kids?
How easy would it be to be able to find your teen out past curfew when there is sure to be a larger group of kids in the same area.
Drive by the park.
Send their butts back home.
Kids and teens need places to gather and to relax and have fun.When it's not available, kids hide out and get into trouble.
My family and I were playing on the playground beside the skate park and there must have been forty kids all on the park, skateboarding and bike-riding and this was before it was open.
Here's what was amazing: it was largely boys, no one was fighting, everyone was taking turns and the ages ranged from around eight to 16 years old.
There was a really happy vibe coming from the park and if anything demonstrates the need for public, free and community-focused gathering spaces, this was it.
If you are unconvinced about the necessity of spending public money on parks such as these, drop by and see the joy on the children's faces in this beautiful park.
Thank you to everyone involved in the project and a job well done.
Sincerely, a grateful Hart kid.
