For nearly a decade the skate community has been looking for a replacement for "Pondy" or Ponderosa Skatepark, which is, by all accounts, an antiquated and run-down community skate zone in Southeast Bend.
Now that Bend's skate community has, finally, gathered enough momentum and found a willing partner in Bend Park & Recreation District, it seems Bend could be home to a rad new park as early as fall of this year. Together the two groups are drafting a design for a NEW skatepark at Ponderosa, which should help fill the skate void in Bend. Add your two cents at the upcoming design meeting from 4-8pm on April 17 at the BPRD District Office.
This is the news story I'm working on for next week. So far I've been reminded of two things: 1. Bend's skate community is often overshadowed by Bend's other action/outdoor sports; 2. skating is an incredibly impressive, athletic pursuit (and is way cooler than mountain biking—see below). In between reporting on this story, I've been logging some serious YouTube time watching old skate comps, Thrasher videos and pool sessions. Man, skating is awesome.
The clip below is a commemoration of Portland's Burnside Skatepark, now more than 20 years old, which exists under the Burnside bridge and started as a skate community DIY project. The city officially sanctioned the park years after it was created.
And in case you're wondering, the Division Street Skatepark Project is not dead in the water or even on hold, really, it's just that with the promise of a new park on the horizon it's all hands on deck to make the new Ponderosa Skatepark happen. The next step, according to Bend skaters, is to come back to DSSP and advocate for other "skate spots" on the Westside and elsewhere in Bend.
