New Shop Opens For Boarders; No Resolution on Place to Skate

by Judy Silberstein

(October 20, 2005) On Monday, October 17, the first school day after the opening of Reef Road, Larchmont’s new skate and surf shop, kids streamed into the store on their way home from school. One enthusiastic young boarder skated across Larchmont Avenue and on into the store, ignoring commands from the crossing guard to “get off the board and walk.”

The after school scene at the corner of Larchmont Avenue and the Boston Post Road underscored two continuing themes in local conversations about skateboarding: the increasing popularity of boarding among Larchmont pre-teens and teens and the difficulty of confining boarders to locations and behaviors deemed safe and appropriate by adults.

Reef Road, owned by Larchmnter Fred Tuck, is already drawing support from young boarders. See: Larchmonter Opening Surf & Skate Shop: Chasing a Dream

So what happened to the skate park idea?

Since surfacing with proposals for a Larchmont Skatepark last spring, one group of parents has been continuing their campaign, according to Dominic Schmitt, a skatepark parent who updated the Larchmont Village Board at their October 11 meeting. He enumerated discussions with officials from the schools, Town of Mamaroneck and both Larchmont and Mamaroneck villages.

The group has not abandoned the idea of building a park, but is also focusing on the Chatsworth Avenue School playground, he explained to the Gazette this week. “If the playground were open to skaters, monitored, and with some minimum investment, it would be a suitable alternative to the skatepark for Larchmont,” he said.

Chatsworth is a “hot spot,” he said. It’s even rated “the best place in Westchester” by one fan posting on Skateboard.com, the online skate shop/gathering place for people “who eat, drink and sleep skateboarding.”

Skating at Chatsworth has been problematic, however. At this point, kids are skating on the playground, but it’s unclear if this is “legal.”

“Kids are confused about what they are allowed to do,” said Mr. Schmitt. Last year signs went up banning boarding at Chatsworth, prompting the skatepark parents to come up with their proposal. However, by late spring, skateboards were allowed back - even as the sign remained. Now, Mr. Schmitt reported, he’s been fielding rumors that the ban may come back or that the playground will be redesigned to discourage skating. “My kids have heard the ledge [the favorite site] may be fenced off,” said Gracen Fraser, another skatepark proponent.

What appears clear is that no one is satisfied with the current unresolved nature of skateboarding at Chatsworth. “It’s difficult for the school,” said Joan Rosen, spokesperson for the district.

Further, there have been complaints from custodians about trash and misbehavior and from other adults about near collisions with boarders.

“We have heard that the problem is one of the school yard being in bad shape, especially on Monday morning,” said Larchmont Trustee Marlene Kolbert. “These are all our kids and we’d like to have something – particularly for the Hommocks-aged kids – but there are some issues and they need discussions between the school, municipal officials and skateboard parents and kids,” she said.

When contacted for comment, Superintendent Paul Fried said, "I am pleased the Larchmont Village Board was discussing the topic of skateboarding. The school district hopes to be able to work collaboratively with the Village and community to come up with a solution that works for all of our kids and the schools."

Mr. Schmitt acknowledged the problems require working out and suggested one possibility. “I’m perfectly fine with putting a monitor out there to see that kids pick up after themselves or behave appropriately,” he said. It could be similar to a sports league with membership fees going to pay for the supervision, he suggested.

“In the end, we’d love to have a place to skate – just like kids play on the swings or shoot hoops,” he said.

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