CASPER, Wyo. — The Casper Skate Park recently underwent some extensive repairs and renovations, vastly improving its safety, thanks to funding from the Rotary Club of Casper.
“We’re always looking for ways to help the community, and it was brought up that the skate park needed some renovations pretty badly,” Rotary Club President Miamie Sleep said. “It was extensive and pretty costly, but we had Duck Derby money, and we wanted to be able to do this for Casper.”
In total, the club put $25,000 towards the repairs.
Several holes in the ground posed a serious safety risk for those who used the skate park, as did the places where cracks made the concrete uneven.
“Those holes were really bad,” said Jeff Caraway, vice president of the 307 Skate Park and Youth Center. “Especially for scooters and roller blades, because those holes were kind of the perfect size to snag those wheels and just murder you. … I ate it a couple times myself.”
“There were 49 holes before the work was done,” president Copper Mack added. “I counted them up. The ramps were in bad shape. We had a curb that was moving.”
According to Mack, the skate park fell into disrepair due to confusion as to whether it was the City of Casper’s or the Boys and Girls Clubs of Central Wyoming’s responsibility to maintain it for several years.
“For about 20 years, there was no consensus on who was supposed to maintain it, and so no one maintained it,” she said.
Mack said the condition of the park kept many people from using it.
“As a parent myself, when I first saw the condition the skate park was in, I immediately went, ‘Nope. I don’t want my kid skating at a park like this.'”
Once the Rotary Club funded the project in late 2022, repairs were fairly swift.
“It must not have taken very long. We donated the money only four or so months ago, and so I was pleasantly surprised when I saw them announce on Facebook that it was already done,” Sleep said.
Sleep said the next Duck Derby is quickly approaching. Tickets will go on sale in the coming weeks, though no official date has been set. When they are sold, though, people will be able to buy tickets from any Rotarian.
Mack said the repairs aren’t only a benefit because of the improved safety of the park, but also because it could increase traffic into Casper.
“Somewhat recently, Tony Hawk came through Wyoming, and he stopped at a lot of local skate parks throughout the state, but he didn’t come to Casper,” she said. “Montana has a program to add a skate park in every city, and I’m sure that will create a lot of tourism, and people could stop here on their way to that too.”
To celebrate the repairs, 307 Skate Park and Youth Center is in the process of planning a skate competition to christen the newly renovated park. Caraway said that a date hasn’t been picked yet, but it will likely be toward the tail end of summer.
“We’re thinking of putting this on right before kids go back to school,” he said. “We don’t want any conflicts with rodeos, fundraisers or other events that might be going on during the summer.”
Skaters of all skill levels will be welcome at the competition. Judges will look for creativity, use of the overall park, a flow to competitors’ lines and more, Caraway said. Mack and Caraway also plan on having vendors, food and more at the event.
“We want it to be a big event, a celebration of our local skaters,” Caraway said.
The pair is also looking to create an indoor skate park for the community. Mack said she’s received interest from a number of community members but is still struggling to find space for it.
“It sometimes feels like there’s only one week per year where you can skate outside,” Mack said with a laugh. “This would give people a place to skate year round, and plus it’s good to have variety.”
Even when an indoor park is added, though, the outdoor park will remain a vital park of the local skate scene, she added.
“It feels great to get this work done and do this for our community,” she said.
