Belgrade parks board weighs sites for proposed 5,000-square-foot skate park

Staff member presented a memo to the Belgrade Regional Parks, Trails and Recreation District Board outlining potential locations for a proposed 5,000-square-foot skate park, recommending further study of Gerry Askin Park and Corbett Park while keeping Lewis And Clark and Sunnyside as options.

The presentation laid out three site-selection criteria: park size, adjacency to nearby uses and proximity to other park investments. Staff member said Gerry Askin Park is "one of our newest parks in town" with restrooms and a sizable parking lot that could support a skate facility, but that space near the bandstand is limited and existing programming could be affected. Staff member identified Corbett Park in the Prescott Ranch area as an alternative with an underused large field and plenty of street parking but warned that placing a skate park there would remove open field space that could be used for future field sports.

Committee members pressed staff on trade-offs. One committee member said putting a skate park next to the pavilion at Gerry Askin Park "would be kind of crammed" and noted a range of existing amenities at that site. Another member asked whether other fields in the valley could replace any lost open space at Corbett Park; staff replied that some field types meet NRPA expectations (diamond fields) while ball fields lag and that future regional-park options could affect long-term decisions.

Staff member also noted longer-range possibilities: Sunnyside is under construction and Ashton Meadows is platted for future phases but likely not build-ready for several years, so those sites were left off the short list. Staff said they are coordinating with a skate-industry contact who has recently moved to the area and could assist with design and fundraising.

There was no motion or vote to select a site. The board asked staff to continue outreach, gather cost estimates and return with additional information; staff said it would follow up with the contact, refine costs and report back at a future meeting.