Boing Boing reader Eric says,
Using discarded construction material and their own spare cash, a group of skaters and their pals constructed a skate park under a freeway in West Oakland. This is an area with a distinct lack of kid-friendly activities but plenty of gang-related activities. The park has turned into a safe place for the kids to hang out and skate in a notoriously bad part of town.
Now Caltrans, in preparation for a construction project, has sealed the area off and is threatening to tear the skate park down. Caltrans is, understandably, concerned about liability since the park is on their property. However, there must be some way of preventing the destruction of this self-driven community project.
Oakland Mayor Jerry Brown, the City Council President, and now CA Sen. Boxer have weighed in on the issue in support of the park, but Caltrans is known for acting unilaterally when it comes to their projects (the SF-Oakland Bay Bridge debacle comes to mind). With these politicians already behind the project, I'm not sure what else can be done, but I do know it would be a cryin' shame if this shining example of a community working to better itself were to be torn down.
Link to SFGate story. Here's an earlier report, and here's another. SF Chronicle photo above by Chris Stewart.
Update: The Man unclenched!
Caltrans agreed today to spare an illegal skate park under an Oakland freeway and work with skaters, community members and city officials to have another agency or group oversee the concrete structure.
Link (Thanks, Darren Kumasawa)
