By Savannah Vicker
For the Opelika
Observer
Auburn and Opelika’s Parks and Recreation departments have joined forces to build a local skate park in place of the old tennis courts at the Indian Pines Golf Course.
Two companies, Spohn Ranch of California and American Ramp Company of Missouri, held separate meetings in Auburn and Opelika to discuss design proposals for the new park, where residents were able to voice their opinions about what elements they’d like to see implemented.
Tito Porrata, custom skatepark architect for ARC, led the meeting and presented several different designs during Tuesday’s meeting at the Opelika Sportsplex.
Porrata, who specializes in customization, said he prides himself in his abilities to incorporate his designs into the physical land.
“The goal is to challenge the individual skaters to kind of skate creatively and then take all these elements to just express themselves and at the same time do something positive in a physical-mental and physical activity,” Porrata said.
According to Porrata, the most important aspect of the design is that it is accessible for skaters of all skill levels and hopes to incorporate elements that will challenge the individual skater.
Those in attendance showed interest in park components ranging from pool and flow bowls to a multilevel street plaza.
Final park proposals will be posted online, and the public will have the chance to vote on their favorite designs.
For more information or updates, visit www.opelika-al.gov.