On Monday, April 16, representatives of Dreamland Skateparks will be making a site visit to the Hines skate park as part of a local effort to make improvements to the existing park.

The skate park project is being spearheaded by the Youth Changing the Community (YCTC) organization.

YCTC was formed a couple of years ago by a broad cross-section of high school and middle school youth, businesses, agencies, the health district, schools, and others interested in enhancing opportunities for the community’s youth.

In May 2017, the youth involved in YCTC were “tired of talking” and decided to take action on a project. After a survey of high school and middle school students, they selected the skate park as their first project, with hopefully many more to follow.

The current skate park is leased from the city of Hines and managed by High Desert Park and Recreation, and the YCTC is working with them to advance the project.

It was decided to have Dreamland Skateparks come to the area for the site visit at a cost of $3,000. To pay for the visit, High Desert Park & Rec received a $1,500 grant from Northwest Farm Credit Services, the city of Hines made a $200 donation, and the remainder came from a fund set up at the time the original skate park was constructed.

Along with the site visit, Dreamland will hold a design meeting, provide a 3-D rendering of the addition to the existing park estimated not to exceed 8,000 square feet, material list and budget, and construction schedule.

The new envisioned park would be about 8,000 square feet, at a cost of about $250,000 if made of all concrete. The park could also be constructed in phases, as funding allows. The funding for the project is expected to come from grants and fundraising efforts.

It was also explained that having Dreamland provide the initial steps does not mean that they will be doing the project, as it still has to go out for bid, nor does it mean that a new skate park will become reality. It is just the first step along the way.

The public is invited to attend the meeting at 6 p.m. Monday, April 16, at the current skate park, followed by a presentation at city hall.

For more information, visit info@highdesertpartnership.org, or contact Becki Graham at 541-573-7820.