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HOLLIS -- The Recreation Department has expressed its conceptual support, and informal discussions with some selectmen have indicated the board's willingness to work with a group of youngsters that are pushing for construction of a skateboard park in town.
The proposal has been in the works for a year now. Juli Jasinski is spearheading the effort, along with several teenagers.
"The Recreation Department voted to support the idea. They are going to support our efforts, but we still must meet with Nichols Field abutters and the Board of Selectmen," said Jasinski, a former teacher, after recently meeting with recreation officials. Nichols Field is one of the locations in town the kids prefer.
Vahrij Manoukian, the chairman of the Board of Selectmen, said he supported the idea of constructing a skateboard park in town. "This group is going through the process in the right way," Manoukian said. "Kids in Hollis need something to do after school to keep them off drugs or crime. This seems like a perfect venue."
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While neighboring communities like Milford and Hudson have skateboard parks, Hollis teens have no place to skate. Over the years they have congregated at the Farley Building on Route 122 or at Monument Park.
Jasinski got involved a year ago. "I used to see the kids skateboarding in town, so one day last year I pulled the car over and started talking with the kids," Jasinski recalled. That conversation led to a meeting with the kids in March 2007 at the library that attracted more than three dozen youngsters, Jasinski said.
More meetings followed, a petition was circulated that gained more than 200 signatures, and the group gradually got organized. "We separated into smaller groups, and asked what kind of park do we want, where should it be and how do we pay for it," Jasinski said.
One of the first things the group agreed on was that they wanted a park designed by kids, not some corporate entity. They also wish to build a park that includes swings for children, perhaps park benches for parents and other amenities.
The teenagers named their group the Hollis Shredders -- shedding is a type of trick kids perform at skateboard parks -- and a few began drawing up plans on what a park should look like. Led by two teens, Nick and Ben Campbell, both Hollis-Brookline High School students, the group has preliminary drawings on a space, which would be approximately 80 feet by 80 feet square.
Some skateboard parks, Jasinski said, are too large with too few obstacles, or "tricks." One park in Pepperell, Mass., is large with only five to six tricks. Hollis kids want a smaller space with more ramps and platforms. The group identified several locations in town where such a park could be constructed, including on land adjacent to the police station or fire station. But all agreed Nichols Field on Depot Road would be "ideal."
Jasinski said as part of the proposal, the group will not be asking for town funds. Rather, the cost of the park would be paid for through donations. "We're not asking for town funds, but fundraising will be the tricky part here," said Jasinski, noting a skateboard park could cost upwards of $200,000 if built properly.
"At the beginning I told the kids to dream big and work hard, and it will happen," Jasinski said.
Recreation Department support is only the first hurdle. The group wants to address the Board of Selectmen and the Planning Board with its plans, which include lighting, paying for and laying the cement itself, and security fencing. "The next step besides town approval would be to begin talking with contractors on the exact cost," Jasinski said.
"We want to make this park as vandal proof as possible, that's why security lighting is essential. But if this works, it could be a win win situation for the town and the kids who live here," Jasinski concluded.
