Burnside Skatepark

Last updated

Burnside Skatepark
Burnside Skatepark May 18, 2019 Southeast corner.jpg
The skatepark as of May 18, 2019. Taken from the southwest corner of the skatepark.
Burnside Skatepark
TypeDIY concrete skatepark
LocationBurnside Bridge
Nearest city Portland, Oregon, U.S.
Coordinates 45°31′23″N122°39′49″W / 45.522964°N 122.663555°W / 45.522964; -122.663555
CreatedOctober 31, 1990

The Burnside Skatepark is a DIY concrete skatepark located in Portland, Oregon, United States. Burnside was the first DIY skatepark project. [1] It is located under the east end of the Burnside Bridge. The project was started without permission from the city of Portland before being accepted as a public skatepark. Its features include many hips, pools, pyramids, and vertical sections. The skatepark receives no funding from the city of Portland. The park is regarded as an on-going project that is funded by donations.

Contents

History

The Burnside Skatepark as of May 18, 2019. Taken from the west wall of the skatepark. Burnside Skatepark May 18, 2019 South Wall.jpg
The Burnside Skatepark as of May 18, 2019. Taken from the west wall of the skatepark.

The DIY project was begun by skateboarders in the summer of 1990 by pouring concrete against Burnside's main wall, creating a vertical transition obstacle in the empty parking lot below the east-end of the Burnside bridge. [2] The skateboarders found inspiration to do so because the area was covered and protected from Portland's rainy season, allowing the park's riders to skate all year long. With a spare couple of bags of cement, the project was begun. The founders created a bank obstacle three feet by three feet in dimensions. The second obstacle created was another bank against the same wall, this time with the dimensions of five by six feet. The banks were eventually merged into a single bank. The second major obstacle built was a mini bowl pocket along the north-end support beam of the bridge. Following these initial small obstacles, the founders of the DIY project struck a deal with nearby construction workers, employed by Ross Island Cement, building the I-84 on-ramp. [3] The skateboarders convinced the workers to give them leftover cement from the I-84 on-ramp construction. From then on, the project's construction exploded, with the skaters re-paving the ground of the parking lot.

Prior to the beginning of the skatepark project, the spot was overrun with illegal activity. [4]

In 2016, an apartment complex known as Yard was constructed west of the Burnside skatepark. There was a lot of speculation on what would happen to the park, with supporters of the skatepark creating petitions to preserve the skatepark. Ultimately, the skatepark did not experience any loss of territory, just a loss of sunlight from the building blockage. The construction of the apartment complex obstructed sunlight from the skatepark, causing Burnside to be much darker during the day. To compensate for this, Yard's chief developer agreed to install lights for the skatepark. [5]

Influence

Signage above the skatepark, 2020 Portland, Oregon, July 25, 2020 - 11.jpg
Signage above the skatepark, 2020

Burnside is credited with the start of the DIY movement in the skateboarding industry. Its foundation lead to two of the largest skatepark-construction companies, Grindline Skateparks and Dreamland Skateparks, both of which have gone to build hundreds of additional skateparks across America. [6]

In an 2009 article the Wall Street Journal attributes Burnside as being instrumental in transforming Portland into "the skateboarding capital of the world [7] " and the site serves as a memorable landmark on the "Portland Walking Tour. [8] "

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Skatepark</span> Park intended for skateboarding and similar activities

A skatepark, or skate park, is a purpose-built recreational environment made for skateboarding, BMX, scootering, wheelchairs, and aggressive inline skating. A skatepark may contain half-pipes, handrails, funboxes, vert ramps, stairsets, quarter pipes, ledges, spine transfers, pyramids, banked ramps, full pipes, pools, bowls, snake runs, and any number of other objects.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Freestyle BMX</span> Cycle sport

Freestyle BMX is bicycle motocross stunt riding on BMX bikes. It is an extreme sport descended from BMX racing that consists of five disciplines: street, park, vert, trails, and flatland. In June 2017, the International Olympic Committee announced that freestyle park was to be added as an Olympic event to the 2020 Summer Olympics.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">FDR Skatepark</span>

FDR Skatepark is a skatepark located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. It is accessible from the Pattison Avenue stop of the Broad Street subway line. The park has long been popular with notable local skaters such as Willy Akers, Chuck Treece, Bam Margera, Kerry Getz and various other local pro skaters. The park was built on unused public land in Franklin Delano Roosevelt Park beneath an overpass of Interstate 95. The park came to be through volunteer labor and donations of materials. Over time the park has expanded with additions and inclusions to the area around the original components of the park.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Harrow Skate Park</span>

Harrow Skate Park or Harrow Solid Surf is one of only two remaining 1970's shotcrete skateparks still operating in the United Kingdom. It is located next to Byron Park and Harrow Leisure Centre in Wealdstone in the London Borough of Harrow, England.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Reedville Creek Park</span>

Reedville Creek Park is a municipal park in the Reedville neighborhood of Hillsboro, Oregon, United States. Opened in 2003, the 9.6-acre (39,000 m2) park is along Cornelius Pass Road at Francis Street in the southeast area of the city. The park includes basketball courts, children’s play equipment, a picnic shelter, tennis courts, and sports fields among other amenities. Reedville Creek was the first and is the only park in Hillsboro with a skatepark.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Andy Kessler (skateboarder)</span> Greek-American skateboarder

Andrew Kessler was a Greek-born American skateboarder, skatepark builder, and prominent member of a loose-knit collective of skateboarders and graffiti artists called the Soul Artists of Zoo York. Kessler is featured in the documentary Deathbowl to Downtown.

Turf Skatepark, also known as "Surfin' Turf" or "The Turf", is a former skatepark located in Greenfield, Wisconsin, United States, less than one mile south of the city of Milwaukee. The Turf was an indoor/outdoor facility consisting of five sculptured concrete pools providing some of the best terrain of its time.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Coleman Playground</span> Public park in Manhattan, New York

Coleman Playground is a public park on the border between the Chinatown and Lower East Side neighborhoods of Manhattan in New York City.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Texas Beach Skate Park</span>

Texas Beach Skate Park, also known as Treasure Island Community Skate Park, is a DIY skatepark located within the planned Riverview Community Park in the Texas Beach riverside area on the north bank of the James River in Richmond, Virginia, United States.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Millennium Skate Park</span> Skatepark in Brooklyn, New York

Millennium Skate Park, also known as Owl's Head Skate Park, is a skate park in Bay Ridge, Brooklyn, located in Owl's Head Park, adjacent to the Sunset Park Greenway.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Golconda Skate Park</span> Skatepark in Brooklyn, New York

Golconda Skate Park, known as Fat Kid, is a public skate park in the Downtown Brooklyn/Fort Greene neighborhoods of Brooklyn, New York City, that originated as a DIY skate spot. Built under the Brooklyn Queens Expressway, the 18,000 square foot professionally built skate park was completed in 2016 and sits within Golconda Playground.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Andy Kessler Skatepark</span> Skatepark

Andy Kessler Skatepark formerly Riverside Skatepark is a skatepark located in Riverside Park on the Upper West Side of Manhattan, New York City. Riverside Skatepark is notable as the first full-sized public skatepark in Manhattan, designed and built by renowned skateboarder and skatepark builder Andy Kessler.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">NYC Skateboard Coalition</span> Skateboarding organization

NYC Skateboard Coalition, established in 2017, is a community organization that advocates for New York City's skateparks and hosts NYC-based skateboard events. The NYC Skateboard Coalition supports the skateboarding community of New York City through hosting skate jams and skatepark clean-ups throughout the city.

Mark "Monk" Hubbard was a skateboarder, artist, skatepark builder, and founder of Grindline Skateparks.

The Wounded Knee 4-Directions Toby Eagle Bull Memorial Skatepark, also known as the Toby Eagle Bull Memorial Wounded Knee Four Directions Skate Park & the WK4-Directions TEB Memorial Skatepark, is a concrete skatepark located in Pine Ridge, South Dakota, United States, on the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation. Completed in 2011 by the local community with help from skateboarding organizations, the skatepark features a spectrum of skate obstacles and is dedicated to a young Lakota skater who died in a car accident: Toby Eagle Bull. The WK4D TOB Memorial Skatepark is located in the Youth Opportunity, or "YO," park, adjacent to the Oglala Lakota Nation powwow grounds, a picnic area, a playground, a basketball court as well as a baseball field.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Skate spot</span>

A skate spot is a location used for skateboarding.

Lauridsen Skatepark, at 88,000 square feet, is currently the largest public skatepark in the United States. Opening on 7 May 2021, it was designed by project engineer and landscape architect Tim West of Snyder & Associates with support from California Skateparks, Landscape Architects and Structural Engineers, Polk County Public Works and the City of Des Moines and is located along the west bank the Des Moines River, at 901 2nd Avenue in downtown Des Moines, Iowa, which is on riverfront property near Second Avenue and School Street just northeast of Wells Fargo Arena.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Martha's Vineyard Skatepark</span> Skatepark on Marthas Vineyard, Massachusetts, U.S.

Martha's Vineyard Skatepark or MV Skatepark is a public skatepark located in the town of Oak Bluffs on Martha's Vineyard, Massachusetts.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Portsmouth Square pedestrian bridge</span> Bridge in Chinatown, San Francisco, California

The Portsmouth Square pedestrian bridge is a prominent architectural landmark in Chinatown, San Francisco that spans over Kearny Street from Portsmouth Square to the second floor and third floor of the Hilton San Francisco Financial District hotel, which houses the Chinese Culture Center of San Francisco.

References

  1. ↑ Lombard, Kara-Jane (October 8, 2015). Skateboarding: Subcultures, Sites and Shifts. Routledge. ISBN   978-1-317-57047-9.
  2. ↑ Willamette Week (November 2, 2015), Under the Bridge: 25 Years of Fighting for Burnside Skatepark, archived from the original on December 12, 2021, retrieved May 13, 2019
  3. ↑ "Burnside History". burnsideproject.blogspot.com. Retrieved May 30, 2019.
  4. ↑ Ihaza, Jeff (April 7, 2018). "Skateboarders Won (Published 2018)". The New York Times. ISSN   0362-4331 . Retrieved January 23, 2021.
  5. ↑ "Iconic Portland skate park on the front lines of gentrification". PBS NewsHour. December 24, 2016. Retrieved May 13, 2019.
  6. ↑ "Burnside Skatepark turns 20 on Halloween". ESPN.com. October 29, 2010. Retrieved May 30, 2019.
  7. ↑ Dougherty, Conor (July 31, 2009). "Skateboarding Capital of the World". Wall Street Journal. ISSN   0099-9660 . Retrieved January 23, 2021.
  8. ↑ "WSJ: Portland is Skateboarding Capital of the World". Portland Walking Tours. July 31, 2009. Retrieved January 23, 2021.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.