Jamestown Parks and Recreation Official Details Next Steps for Skate Trail, Park

Jamestown Parks and Recreation District Executive Director Amy Walters told roughly 20 people at a public meeting that a proposed skate trail concept for McElroy and Liechty parks could move forward while fitting the district’s Comprehensive Parks Master Plan. Walters said the concept - sited just west of the Al Boelke Baseball Complex, where field renovations began - “would be attainable because it does not require a lot of excavation,” and added, “I think this would be … a realistic concept that would align with the work that we've done in the master plan for McElroy Park.”

The meeting, held at The Bunker at 1520 3rd St. SE, reviewed master-plan graphics showing a potential skate trail and solicited community input on design, phasing and next steps. Jamestown Parks and Recreation has framed the master plan as a collaborative roadmap: “A Comprehensive Parks Master Plan acts as a roadmap that identifies the needs and values of our community. It includes detailed plans for things like land use, infrastructure, services, and programs and serves as a guide to making decisions that will shape the future.”

The skate facility discussion follows the 2024 closure of the long-standing McElroy Park skate park, which had been at that site for more than 20 years. A planning committee created after a 2021 request to repurpose the old skate courts into pickleball courts has been evaluating what a new skate facility should include and where it should be located. Planning committee member Troy Gunderson said the former installation “was never designed as one,” underscoring recommendations to plan a purpose-built skate surface rather than reusing mismatched courts.

Planners presented a sizing guideline based on the Parks and Recreation District’s service-area population of about 25,000 people: a skate facility in the range of 8,000 to 10,000 square feet. The master-plan concept identifies the skate trail as potentially including multiple features, and Walters said the project could be developed in phases to match available funding and volunteer capacity.

Walters emphasized that carrying the project forward will require a committed stakeholder group and a fundraising effort. Jamestown Parks and Recreation has asked interested residents to join future planning discussions; district staff are collecting contact information and intend to include volunteers, donors and technical partners in subsequent meetings.

Photos and concept slides were shown at the meeting, and organizers said more detailed master-plan materials and site drawings remain available through the district. For now, the key decisions ahead are forming the stakeholder team, securing funding, and advancing a phased design that meets safety, accessibility and use expectations for Jamestown skaters.

Next steps will determine timing and scale. Residents who want to follow progress or be notified of future meetings should contact Jamestown Parks and Recreation; the district has indicated the master plan will guide formal proposals and public review as the project moves from concept toward implementation.