Progress made towards new skate park in Roanoke

City Council approved plan that includes skate park

ROANOKE, Va. – A new skate park in Roanoke is one step closer to reality.

On Monday afternoon, Roanoke City Council members voted to amend the Roanoke Parks and Recreation master plan.

The plan now calls for a new skate park in 5-10 years funded by public and private money.

The current park is old and will be unusable when demolition of the nearby Wasena Bridge starts next year.

Members of the Roanoke Skate Park Initiative told council members they need help fundraising and getting land for a new park.

"I know one of the main things they want us to do is fund it on our own. I know we can do that, we just need more cooperation with the city helping us get interaction with other people," Roanoke Skate Park Initiative member Alek Patton said.

He estimates a new skate park would cost around $500,000, and as of Monday only about $20,000 had been raised.