Neighbors Voice Fervent Opposition to Skate Park

As many as 50 neighbors from the Monterey Avenue area gathered at a public meeting in Capitola Wednesday night, many with the aim of stopping further planning of a behind . 

A potential skate park has been in the works for years in Capitola, with steam building quickly over the last six months.

But if the message of the masses at the meeting means much to the Capitola City Council, that steam may soon vanish. Anyone with something to say was invited to speak at the meeting, and with the exception of a few residents, everyone who chose to voice an opinion was adamantly against the park.

Most neighbors cited noise issues, the possibility of a newly-constructed bathroom, increased traffic, crime and intrusion by older kids for whom the park is not intended, as reasons to cancel park plans. But perhaps the principal complaint was that many neighbors were initially told that the park would be 2,000 square feet, but were then shocked to see a 9,000 square foot mock up. 

Many of the attendees signed a petition asking the city council to reconsider its Sept. 22 decision to build in Monterey Park. 

To call the beginning of the meeting heated would be an understatement.

"[Skaters] will come over to my cul de sac and smoke their weed over there and tag my house," one attendee posited.

"I am the mother of two small children. They don't smoke pot," a park proponent rebutted. "A lot of you are going to die in the next 10-15 years. You're a bunch of old, ridiculous people."

While Mayor Mike Termini said the park is aimed at 8- to 12-year-olds, many in the neighborhood are skeptical that merely a small size will deter older skaters from partaking as well.

"It's like putting a candy shop next to a kid and saying, 'Don't go to the candy shop.' It's not going to happen," one man said.

The city council will discuss skate park plans further in a public hearing at Thursday's meeting at 7 p.m. Stay tuned to Capitola-Soquel Patch for coverage of that meeting, where it will be seen if those in favor of the park will appear to combat the Wednesday night crowd.

See the proposed mock up of the park above, which Mayor Termini stressed is merely a suggestion, not a firm decision. 

Do you support the idea of a skate park? Do you sympathize with the nearby neighbors? Tell us in the comments!