Christmas has arrived early for skaters and wheeled sports enthusiasts with work due for completion ‘by the end of this week’ on the hotly anticipated new Sidmouth Skatepark and wheeled sports facility at Manstone Recreation Field.
Sidmouth Town Council appointed skatepark consultant Maverick Skateparks back in June 2018 and after consultations and designs were approved, together with suitable funding being finalised, Maverick’s workforce moved onto the site in September. Working firstly to demolish the original surface mounted ramps and surfacing, the team worked tirelessly to replace the old park with a state of the art, sprayed concrete facility incorporating ideas and designs from the wheeled sports community and users. The resulting design and build quality make it one of the best Skateparks in the area. It uses a super smooth sprayed concrete and includes around 200 cubic metres of special concrete to construct. On one of the final mornings of construction, the on-site team were delighted to receive a card and box of chocolates from a young girl who delivered them to the site with her father.
Councillor Louise Cole, Chair of the Town Council’s Youth Provision Working Group commented: “Children and young people in Sidmouth have been involved in the design process, taking account of what they wanted to feature in the new skate park to make it the best it could be. I know it is eagerly awaited and will be well used. It’s a really high-quality facility for young people to develop their skills and have fun. It’s really important that there are spaces for positive activities which enable young people to be active and social. I think it will be quite the envy of other towns and after such a tough year, will be a welcome boost to our young people and their sense of place in our community.”
Russ Holbert, Maverick’s Design Director added: “Sidmouth is a bespoke, high end spray concrete skatepark facility which has been designed in conjunction with the local riding community. Heading into the Olympics for 2021, the future is super exciting for wheeled sports in Sidmouth and beyond!”
The Town Council agreed on Monday (7 December) to continue work to provide safety lighting for the scheme in spring 2021 to support the use of the park in the darker winter early evenings.
Together with the new recently completed Alma Bridge and Knowle Drainage and Amphitheatre scheme due for completion in 2021, Sidmouth has benefitted from some large capital schemes in the last year. This new facility is one of the biggest projects ever undertaken by Sidmouth Town Council who are two thirds funding the project together with S106 funds made available by EDDC. The new skatepark is suitable for use by all ages and all skill levels of wheeled sports users including skaters, BMX bikers and scooters.