The Philomath Park Advisory Board pushed back a planned discussion on replacing the skate park at Philomath City Park by opting to wait until more interested board and community members can attend.
The item had been placed on the Sept. 1 agenda, but board chair Larry Sleeman said many of the people who wanted to weigh in on the topic weren’t able to attend the meeting.
Assistant City Manager Chelsea Starner agreed, noting that about half of those who had requested the item be placed on the agenda couldn’t be there.
The board voted to move the discussion to its Oct. 6 meeting. Starner said she wanted newer board members to have a chance to get up to speed on the project’s history before the topic is revisited, and encouraged them to review background materials before then.
“It does come up a lot, but there have been some kind of significant roadblocks with it,” Starner said. “So, it’ll just be a good topic to talk about. But I think it is important.”
Sleeman also offered a preview of where the discussion may be headed, saying recent observations at Music in the Park events showed the existing skate park being used mostly by bike and scooter riders rather than skateboarders. He suggested that could point the board toward a pump track rather than a traditional skate park.
Starner said the board plans to gather public input on the direction before making any decisions.
The Park Advisory Board’s next meeting is scheduled for 5:30 p.m. Oct. 6 at City Hall.
So that’s what are tax dollars are being used for! Maybe that should be something we all vote on?