The Skatepark Project Grant Awarded

Press Release

Salida, Colorado – 12/01/20

For Immediate Release

The Skatepark Project Grant Awarded

The City of Salida was recently awarded a $10,000 grant from the The Skatepark Project (formerly The Tony Hawk Foundation). Skatepark Project Grants are awarded to free, public skateparks in high-need areas of the U.S. Applicants must demonstrate a strong grassroots commitment to the project, particularly in the form of fundraising by local youth and community groups as well as,

include local skaters throughout the planning, fundraising and design process.

Amy Reed, Friends of Salida Skateparks board president said, “This was a great honor for us. We acknowledge the prestige that a Tony Hawk Foundation Grant carries. The feedback from our community and the City of Salida has been very positive during our fundraising drive. This grant is a real testament to the hard work of so many people in our community.  It has especially been an incredible opportunity for the teens and youth skaters to experience both the intrinsic and extrinsic rewards that come from volunteering.

Alec Beck from The Skatepark Project’s Board of Directors said, “We were delighted to approve a skatepark construction grant to The Friends of Salida Skateparks. FOSS reached out to us over a year ago to take a look at their project trajectory. It became clear to our staff that FOSS did their homework and has been following best practices from the get-go.  There were several factors that made us recommend this project for a grant, but the youth involvement was most impressive. Seeing kids from age 5-18 involved in a civic action project is what makes projects like these stand out. FOSS created an opportunity for the youth of Salida to prove to themselves that they can improve their community, and they stepped up to make it happen.”

Although construction is underway for the new skatepark, FOSS is still fundraising. FOSS started fundraising in early 2019, since then they have raised nearly $30,000, most of which is committed to the current construction project. In the spring of 2020 the City of Salida was awarded a GOCO grant for the skatepark. The City has decided to move forward with construction of a 14,500 sq foot skatepark. FOSS is currently raising money for a shade pavilion, power, lighting,  and benches. These were items that had to be removed from the construction project due to budget constraints and a fundraising slow down because of Covid-19. “We currently have a crowdfunding donation site as well as a Buy-A-Brick campaign, and change donation jars around town. Every little bit helps,” said Laura Donavan FOSS board member.

If you would like to learn more about Friends of Salida Skateparks fundraising go to www.go.rallyup.com/salidaskatepark there you will find more information and a link to the Buy-A-Brick campaign. Please follow Friends of Salida Skateparks on Facebook or Instagram for project updates.