Local youth renew Sylva skatepark conversation
The temporary half-pipe is no longer there for skaters to use. Hannah McLeod photo
Residents of Jackson County have long voiced their support, organized and fundraised for a skatepark with little to show other than a temporary half-pipe that stood behind Motion Makers in Sylva for just over one year.
Now, members of the skateboarding club at Smoky Mountain High School are revitalizing the conversation around a skatepark. On Jan. 21, five high schoolers came before county commissioners to share their stories and encourage the building of a skatepark.
“I think providing a safe place for skaters in Sylva would be a much-needed service, for not only the youth, but just the people of Sylva,” said Blaze Shields, who started the Skate Club at Smoky Mountain High School during his freshman year.
In addition to the high schoolers in attendance, two Sylva Commissioners attended the county meeting to show their support for the project; Mary Gelbaugh has been a long-time supporter of a skatepark project, and now, Jon Brown, who was appointed to fill the unexpired term of Natalie Newman last May, has taken up the mantle.
“The Town of Sylva, we are interested in something like that being built, whether it’s in Sylva or somewhere near Sylva,” Brown said.
After organization by the Town of Sylva and Sylva Skatepark Project, a group of residents advocating for the construction of a skatepark, in 2023 the town was able to construct a temporary skatepark that included a half-pipe with a five-foot extension, quarter-pipe, two rail slides and a box.
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The temporary park was located in the parking lot behind Motion Makers but had to be removed after water damage caused by flooding from Hurricane Helene. The skate equipment was never intended to be a permanent park.
Shields mentioned the success that other towns have seen with their own skateparks. He started the skate club at Smoky Mountain High School when he was a freshman, and now, as a senior, says he’s seen the sport grow and provide an outlet for people who may not be interested in mainstream sports like football, baseball or basketball.
“I think that if we build a skatepark in town, it would not only help with providing a safe space, but it would help provide an attraction for tourism,” said Shields. Skateboarding is often seen in a bad light because of its roots in anti-pop culture, how it was started, but in recent years has been proven to be a healthy means of exercise for people who don’t necessarily want to participate in team sports, like me and my friends here, or just conventional sports in general.”
Shields started skateboarding when he got to high school, as the world was coming out of quarantine following the COVID-19 Pandemic, because there wasn’t much to do. He watched as kids around him found other, less productive outlets that led them to get into trouble. But skating, Shields said, has kept him out of trouble.
“If you were to find my file at the high school, you’d see that I have ADHD, I have ADD, I have a 504 plan, and I feel like having the ability to express myself through skateboarding has helped me kind of control that and become a better student in general,” said Shields. “My freshmen year, I struggled… I started putting my energy more into something constructive; it helped me straighten my life out and now I’m able to do things like be on the hunter safety shooting team at Smoky Mountain High School, as well as participate in FFA, and those sorts of things.”
Henry Walker is also part of the skating community at the high school. He is from Florida, where he was homeschooled, and when he moved to Jackson County, just out of quarantine, he knew no one.
“I started skateboarding, and I met some of the people here and out of that I used that to learn how to do school,” Walker said. “Skateboarding helped me get physically active, after being homeschooled, I was always at home. Now I’m out in the community every day, doing anything from skateboarding to helping out as much as I can.”
Several of the skaters noted that while a skatepark will be popular for high school aged skaters, it will also be an important space for young children, or people of any age, who want to try and get into the sport.
“Skateboarding has really helped me get out of a lot of trouble, get me on the right track, and help me going in the right direction,” Walker said. “A skatepark will keep us in a safe space so we don’t get told to leave places and all that. We’ll have one spot to go, we can stay out of everyone’s way, have our own little area, focus on building as a community.”
One skater, Isaiah, noted that most parents aren’t going to go to a different county to let their kids go and try their hand at skating. For that reason, it would be especially beneficial to have access to a skatepark in the county.
Johnny Smith is a freshman at Smoky Mountain High School, born and raised in Jackson County, and he spoke to commissioners about the ways in which skateboarding has helped him overcome his fears.
“I know that I had a lot of fear when I first started,” said Smith. “Since then, I’ve been more daring, of course in an appropriate manner… we like to promote safety, of course. I believe having a safer environment leads to a lot less injuries. I know that when using an unconventional space, like if people try and skate on a sidewalk, there’s risk of cars or risk of accidentally hitting someone, and I know that a safe space that’s separate from each other will definitely decrease the odds.”
Ernesto Dominguez is a junior at Smoky Mountain High School. He also argued the importance of skateboarding for mental health, community and expression.
“In all my time and all the places I’ve been, from Japan, to England, and even Mexico, skateboarding has always been a thing that brings people together,” said Dominguez. “Skateboarding is something that brings people together. It is a symbol of personality and freedom to express oneself and we just want to have a place to express ourselves.”
“Blaze here introduced me to skateboarding, and Henry here gave me my first board to practice on, and through them I’ve been able to become more active, I’ve been able to do things like this, talk and just be in a healthier space of mind,” Dominguez continued. “Of course it won’t just magically heal me, but it helps. You can look and find hundreds of stories just like mine where people who have been in dark spaces in their life can find freedom to talk to others and find something new to do in skating.”
Commissioner Chairman Mark Letson thanked the skateboarders for showing up, noting that it takes a lot for five high schoolers to come before the board of commissioners and speak.
“It’s intimidating, even though it shouldn’t be, but it is, great job,” said Letson.
