Help us add features for a better skate park

Dear friends, community members, fellow skaters, & supporters of community projects,

You may have heard that there is a community effort underway to revamp and expand the skatepark at Adams playground in Peterborough. The park is a great asset for the town and region, AND we think it could be so much better. Over 30% of the money has already been raised and we are writing to ask you to join the effort. By moving the existing ramps over to create some flow in the park, adding in some new smaller features for beginners, adding in a mini half-pipe, resurfacing the pad, and throwing up some lights, we think the park could be a real destination spot for children and teens learning how to move their bodies in space: be it skateboarding, scootering, bmx biking, or as my kids did when they were young, simply running up and down the ramps, gaining balance in motion.

Many of us were here when the town redid the skatepark back in the late 00’s. We were excited for the park and for what it would mean for the community. We envisioned hanging out there with our kids, teaching them to skate, making new friends, maybe even dusting off our old boards and getting out there ourselves. We imagined the park as a safe place where our kids could build self-confidence as they progressed at something technical and challenging. A place where they could learn balance, engage with other kids with similar interests and take part in something physical. In the last 15 years that need has grown even more: to have a safe, inviting, well-designed space that is outside and off screens is so important for our youth.

The park in its current form, however, is very limiting. It works for advanced riders, but that’s really it. The existing features are too big to learn on and even a little intimidating to riders with some experience. We want to revamp the park to meet that initial vision we all had, to make it inviting for kids and families, to make it the place to hang out in town. And we need your help.

We have already raised over $30,000, which puts us well on our way to our goal of raising $100,000. This has allowed us to start the design process and engage with the Peterborough Recreation committee with regards to the upgrades. There is an amazing show of support from our community in both funding this project and also in offering input into what the park needs. If we can achieve our fundraising goal, we will be able to upgrade the skatepark into one of the best in central New England.

Peterborough Marble & Granite Works is designing us a custom 10 foot granite curb and a granite manny pad. With these ambitions, it takes elbow-grease, which is free, but it also takes supplies, materials, and certain tools which are not free. We have a great core group of skaters who will be helping with these additions.

Any above and beyond funds will be saved for later use for repairs, paint, clean-up, or anything else.

We are reaching out to you because of your relationship to the Monadnock region, your relationship with one of us, your love of skateboarding, or because we think you might want to support creating a destination like the one we have described for kids, teens, your children or your grandkids. If you are in a position to make a donation to this effort, we would, of course, be grateful. But whether or not you can make a financial contribution, we hope that you can support us by spreading the word about our current fundraising effort either via word of mouth, email or social media. We know there are plenty of folks out there who support the idea of making the skatepark so much better and who might also be in position to help. Can you help us reach them?

The fundraising campaign runs through May of 2023. We hope to finalize designs, line up materials and labor and get to work in early summer. All donations to the project are tax deductible. For those looking to make a tax deductible donation and to receive confirmation, please email Chris Anderson at [email redacted], text him at [phone redacted] or email Roxanne Loudin at [email redacted], text her at [phone redacted]. We plan to aggregate pledges and bring them to the town in the May planning board meeting. A conceptual drawing showing some of what we hope to do depending on how much we raise is included below.