By MATT SANDERSON

ECHO PARK — Skateboarders can’t resist turning an empty backyard swimming pool into a skate park. Now, the city wants to do the same with a closed municipal pool.

The Department of Recreation and Parks and Council District 13 are planning to put a skate park park on the site of an outdated, unsafe and unused swimming pool wedged between a 101 Freeway onramp and the Echo Park Recreation Center across from the Echo Park Lake, according to the Bureau of Engineering.

The first of three public meetings for a proposed Echo Park skate park are scheduled for early October at the recreation center.

Approximately $500,000 will be spent on the project, including the design. The skate park will be designed by HMC Architects, and the skate surface will be designed by HMC’s sub-consultant, Site Design Group, said Richard Campbell, Bureau of Engineering project manager.

Echo Park’s skate park will funded through Proposition K, which generates $25 million a year for park and recreation facilities and improvements.

“There was a lot of interest among locals for a skate park, and that’s why Recreation and Parks identified it as a Prop K [competitive grant] project,” said Campbell.

13th District Councilman Mitch O’ Farrell helped secure most of the necessary funds when he worked for his predecessor and now mayor Eric Garcetti.

“For years I heard from Echo Park residents about the need for a skate park in the community,” Councilmember O’Farrell said Tuesday. “While working for my predecessor, I was able to secure $350,000 from Proposition K funds. Shortly after taking office I met with Recreation and Parks to kick start the effort. I am committed to making this park enhancement a reality, and I’m excited that we have initial funding in place for Recreation and Parks to move forward with a design.”

The seven-member Local Volunteer Neighborhood Oversight Committee (LVNOC) holds its first meeting Thursday, Oct. 8 at 6 p.m. in the conference room of the main building at the recreation center.

Campbell says the first meeting will be to generate ideas, and by the second LVNOC meeting there should be some skate park renderings ready and by the last meeting the drawings should be finalized. However, the project would still need secure final city approval before contractors would be able to bid on the park.

Matt Sanderson is a journalist, photographer and digital media producer. A native of Rhode Island, he received his bachelor’s degree in journalism from the University of New Hampshire and moved to Los Angeles in 2012 with Patch.com/AOL



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