SJC celebrates completion of Lopez Skate Park and calls for inaugural skaters

Submitted by San Juan County

San Juan County Parks, Recreation, and Fair is pleased to reopen the Lopez Island Skate Park after an extensive renovation. The new, approximately 6,300-square-foot skatepark will officially be opened on Sunday, Dec. 1 at noon. The County invites any and all skaters to attend with their favorite set of wheels to christen the new park. The location is near the Lopez Center at 204 Village Road, Lopez Island.

In the summer of 2022, the San Juan County Council awarded $600K for the replacement of the existing Lopez Village Skatepark, managed by the San Juan County Parks, Recreation, and Fair Department. The previous plywood skate park was a generous donation from the Richlite/Skatelite company in 2013. Because our environment is wet and the park is not covered, the support system began to decay, fasteners were not holding and the park began to fail.

Grindline Skateparks, Inc., one of the top, cast-in-place skatepark design and construction companies in the country having built or designed over 400 skateparks worldwide, completed the project in late November.

The new skatepark is a cast-in-place, concrete skatepark that will extend the life of high-quality skating on Lopez Island for the next generation. The Parks & Fair Department invites the public to join the celebration of a new community asset for years to come!

For more information, contact Gabrielle Conway, projects and grants coordinator at gabriellec@sanjuancountywa.gov.

San Juan County’s Department of Parks, Recreation, and Fair oversees public parks on all four ferry-served islands, manages camping and hosts the San Juan County Fair. The department offices are located at 849 Argyle Avenue, Friday Harbor, WA 98250. For more information about San Juan County’s Department of Parks, Recreation, and Fair, visit www.sanjuancountywa.gov/430/Parks-Recreation-Fair.