School board will roll on skateboard park idea

Deirdre Newman

After 10 years of spinning their wheels, local skateboarders are

getting closer to their dream -- a park where they can perform

ollies, kick flips and front-side grinds without the perils of

skating on the sidewalk.

On Tuesday, the Newport-Mesa Unified School Board unanimously

decided to look into developing a skateboard park at Davis Elementary

School in Costa Mesa.

A local skateboard activist said he was stoked by the decision.

“I feel really good,” said Roger Cetina, 14, who has been fighting

for a park for the past few years. “In the beginning I assumed it

would be handed to me on a silver platter and I failed, so now I’m

more cautious. I’m happy that everyone said yes.”

One resident raised concerns about the proposed location.

“I’ve seen vandals at Davis doing gross things,” JoAnn Copp said.

“I think another place would be more appropriate than next to an

elementary school.”

The school board’s approval follows on the heels of a decision

from the Costa Mesa City Council, which approved its half of the

joint resolution earlier this month. The two parties decided to

collaborate on a park after an attempt by the district to partner

with Newport Beach fell through. Costa Mesa will be leading the

exploration of the Davis site, Supt. Robert Barbot said.

Costa Mesa and the school district say public participation is key

to the skateboard park’s success, so they will invite comments from

various groups, including the Mesa del Mar Homeowners Assn.,

residents near TeWinkle Park, representatives from the skateboarding

community and the Davis Elementary School Parent-Teacher Assn. during

the evaluation process.

“This is just the beginning of the dialogue,” trustee Jim Ferryman

said. “We want input from everyone who has a stake in this. If it’s

ultimately decided that Davis is the appropriate site, there are ways

to mitigate a lot of the concerns.”

* DEIRDRE NEWMAN covers education. She may be reached at (949)

574-4221 or by e-mail at deirdre.newman@latimes.com.