Southampton’s skating community has a new set of structures to skate on, after Hoglands Park’s old park was replaced by a new one designed by experienced designer Rich Holland.
Holland teamed up with long-standing member of the Southampton community Steve Béga, along with involvement from Southampton City Council and the John Hansard Gallery to bring the new setup to Southampton.
The new stake park forms part of a wider project that has been funded as an Arts Council project by the John Hansard Gallery.
Those involved had it in their mind that the use of it could encourage further creativity, social connection between residents and an increase in the identity of the city.
The size of the deal was so great that the driving forces of the project wanted to make a big deal of the new arrival.
There was a whole event to celebrate the opening of the new facility, where the crowd could watch and enjoy more than just skating tricks.
The event, titled Push and Play, took place on 23 August and was organised by the female-led skating group We Skate Soton.
A couple of months on from its opening, the new venture has succeeded and then some as all ages and all skills have taken to it.
It looks like the developers have created a perfect mix of beginner-friendly areas for those wanting to try skating out for the first time, while still leaving plenty of room for the advanced skaters who will likely use it most.
As a result, if the current level of attention remains, maintenance may be needed quicker than expected but for the good reason that it has been used so much.
Written by: James Mclean
Edited by: Ashley Whiteway
