By Seth Daniel
One of the most interesting places for things on four wheels – or even two wheels – is right in Charlestown at the Paul Revere Park, as the long-promised skate park was unveiled last Saturday, Nov. 14, under the highway.
The Lynch Family Skatepark, named after Peter Lynch of Fidelity Investments fame, opened with great fanfare on Saturday – hosting local skaters and professionals as well. The skatepark accommodates riders on skateboards, BMX bicycles and inline skaters.
The park is located just on the northern edge of Paul Revere Park, straddling the Cambridge and Boston line.
For skaters like Andrew MacDonald, a Boston native who moved to California, the park was a welcome sight.
“I lived in Boston and always dreamed of having a great facility like this for skating, but we never had anything like this,” he said. “So, I had to move to California to get my career on the right path. Now, skaters have a world-class facility right here.”
MacDonald was skateboarding’s World Champion eight years in a row for the World Cup Skateboard Series.
The park features a long promenade with several skate features and rails along its edges. There are several bowls as well for skateboarders and BMX riders to try out as well. It runs right under the elevated highway that feeds the Zakim/Bunker Hill Bridge.
The project began with an idea by sculptor Nancy Schon, famous for her ‘Tortoise and Hare’ and ‘Make Way for Ducklings’ pieces in the Back Bay. The Charles River Conservancy grabbed the idea and ran with it, taking the first steps in planning the park in 2000.
Fundraising began in 2004 and has continued throu
Nora Vasconcellos skates the walls with no problem in the new Lynch Family Skatepark on the edge of Paul Revere Park in Charlestown. The extraordinary skatepark opened to the public last Saturday, Nov. 14, after 15 years of planning and fundraising. The park was pulled off by the Charles River Conservancy, but will be operated by the DCR.
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Stantec designed the park and ValleyCrest Landscape Developoment – a specialist in California skateparks – constructed the facility. More than 400 local skaters were surveyed during the design.
The DCR will manage the public park.