November 07, 2009
What's Inside:
Skateboards nixed on streets, again
A heavy rain that blanketed St. Joseph for the better part of two days kept skateboarders indoors — more effectively than a city law.
Originally, a city ordinance regulated skateboards, bicycles, in-line skates and similar devices. It stated that those devices couldn’t be used on sidewalks within a business district, in or around city parks (except where permitted) or in the city’s parking garages or lots. It also stated that skateboards and similar devices could not be used on any street.
Somewhere along the line, that last part was “lost” and for the last several years, riding a skateboard on the streets of St. Joseph was completely legal.
Sgt. Richard Wall with the St. Joseph Police Department recently witnessed an event that would change all that.
“I was out eating with another officer and saw a young man on a skateboard ride through a busy intersection,” Mr. Wall said. “He hit a rock in the middle of the intersection, which stopped his skateboard, and he went off and hit his chin on the curb.”
Mr. Wall discussed the legality of riding a skateboard in the street when he discovered that the section regarding riding on a street was no longer in the ordinance. Mr. Wall said he discovered that in the late 1990s, a group of families petitioned the original ordinance and had the section repealed regarding skateboards on public streets.
Mr. Wall then found a copy of the original
ordinance, including the extra section for street laws, and sent it along with a statement to the City Council, where it was once again approved last month.
“There’s just no reason not to have it,” Mr. Wall said. “We have plenty of skate parks in town. The streets are meant for cars, not skateboarders.”
Mr. Wall also mentioned the fact that there are no laws regulating the age one has to be to ride a skateboard.
“A 5-year-old could have been riding down the street on a skateboard,” Mr. Wall said.
Megan Tilk can be reached
at megantilk@npgco.com.
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where are the skate parks? just curious.
So what's next? No riding bicycles? No scooters (not the electric kind)? Nothing with wheels? St Joe does not offer enough alternate areas for children to ride without being driven to starting points. The city is definitely discouraging physical activity. This also goes hand-in-hand with the idea that the city needs to maintain its sidewalks. There are many places where a bike, skateboard or walker would be unable to traverse.
Heritage,
The three city skate parks are at Hyde Park in the South Side, the Bode Complex in the middle of town, and on Mapleleaf Parkway up north (off St. Joseph Avenue and Grand Avenue -- get with it, dude).
Other unofficial skate parks abound.
From your filled-with-useless-knowledge City Hall reporter,
Joe
i know the "park" on the maple leaf. that is what passes for a skate venue here? what a joke. are the other venues at least bigger than a breadbox?
joe..... the filled with incredibly important items of interest guru!!!!!!!!!
by unofficial, do you mean bootleg?
sadly, this city sees skaters as some kind of threat. it is outdoor activity, not some kind of alternative universe. gmab!!!!!!!
common sense would dictate that if the city had any (at least 1 but preferrably 2-3) decent skate parks then kids would not look for skating adventure in business areas where I agree they do not need to be ramping steps and grinding on railings. However the city does not have a decent skate park, a skate park is more than a slab of concrete with 2-3 tiny litle rails or ramps. The "skate parks" the city has are a joke.
Seriously? Am I reading this correctly--Sgt Wall saw a skateboarder hit his chin and now kids can't ride their skateboard on any public street? That's absurd. I'm all for safety, but that is overkill. Why would I take my kids to a skate park and pay a fee so they can ride skateboards? They ride their skateboards and bikes every day on our street in a nice quiet neighborhood and as their parent we've gone over safety rules.
Why not limit the law to busy streets (using common sense) or just find a better way to protect the people on your lunch hour. Hey there are kids playing football which statistically have 3.5 more injuries than skateboarders ---maybe you should ban that too. And don’t get me started on bicycles! They’re worse than playing football. In fact in 2004 there were 77 deaths from bicycles. (Stats for kids under 15) Yet there are still many parents allowing their children to ride these horrible things in our town. I can’t believe you haven’t stopped this yet! Oh that’s probably still a decision for a PARENT to make!
http://www.cpsc.gov/CPSCPUB/PREREL/prhtml08/08252.html
correct me if i am wrong, but is there no gravity at the sanctioned skate parks? can't you fall and bust your chin there just as well? or is there some kind of magic mojo there which will catch you before you fall!!!!! i just went down to the pitiful postage stamp of a so-called park on the mapleleaf, just to check it out . what a joke!
I'm all for banning skateboards on public streets - I support it!
I see absolutely no good that can come from a skateboard in traffic.
Ha!
This is strupid. They are skateboarding. And yes all of the parks in St. Joe are a joke. They atre literally slabs of concrete with a small halfpipe and a couple of rails. They are garbage.
the stabbing took place at Hyde Park and one day I was there with my son (I'd never leave him there) and some kids were smoking something other than cigarettes in their car right there at the park. Definitely not a safe place and not because of kids falling on skateboards.