The Norwood Road skatepark in Paeroa may not look like much at first glance, but it is far from forgotten.
Every week, the energy at the park intensifies, with the site quickly becoming the centre of a local skateboarding revival.
It’s thanks to Janik Levien and the crew behind Hauraki Skate, who want to grow the sport within the community – starting with free sessions and a mission to breathe life back into the slab they grew up skating on.
“Me and my two brothers both grew up skating this park with many of my other mates that we still skate with today. It’s a special place for all of us,” Janik told The Profile.
“We were all young rugby kids, but skateboarding was awesome in the way we could do it when the sun was shining, any day of the week.”
One key upgrade for the park sits at the top of the priority list: a professional concrete grind at a cost of $9000.
The benefits of a concrete grind were “massive”, Janik said, from safety to usability, presentation and preservation.
It was crucial to making the park a safe and inviting space for young skaters finding their feet.
“Paeroa has two skateparks, the main one at Railway Reserve that was built late-2010 and the original one on Norwood Rd that was built about 25 years ago.”
“Both are still usable, but are now weathered and the concrete is rough and usability is not ideal.”
Janik said the Railway Skatepark was a lot bigger, had more obstacles, and was a more-advanced park to teach kids. However, throughout winter, it got “hammered” by the nearby oak trees which dropped leaves and debris that filled the park, creating hazards and an unpleasant environment for users.
“Norwood Rd on the other hand – yes it’s the older park and smaller, but without the problem trees and the sunken-in design, it hasn’t been as hammered from debris and failed drainage,” he explained.
“Most of the park is flat concrete, great for practicing the basic fundamentals of skateboarding like pushing, riding, turning, and stopping. Then it has a bunch of small and large obstacles, a few mellow ramps and some add-ons we have added to make it flow better.
“It’s functioning okay for us at the moment,” he said, “but with all old parks the concrete is rough.”
Janik said the concrete surface at Norwood Rd was significantly worn and uneven, making it difficult for users to build and maintain speed, particularly younger skaters with less power and experience.
The rough texture also increased the risk of injury in falls, caused faster wear and tear on equipment, and, compared to other facilities in neighbouring districts, fell short when it came to surface quality.
“Making the decision to have Norwood our main park came down to what we can do ourselves to make the park better,” he said.
“We have multiple trade skills of our own where we can build new obstacles, and renovate and maintain the park due to its size at next to nothing cost – just for the love of skateboarding and getting the park some action again.”
Hauraki Skate has started running free weekly skate sessions for tamariki and rangatahi aged six to sixteen, and despite being only two months into their mission, Janik said it was safe to say they were happy with how it was rolling.
“Each week now we have people using the Norwood Rd skatepark as it’s our homebase we are starting from. We have also noticed more kids turning up on the odd weekday after school and on weekends,” he said. “The kids must be talking about it at school, and we can already see the growth and interest just in the past month of having the skate school.”
So, with the excitement ramping up and more skaters beginning to join in, locking down the $9,000 for the concrete grind was the next big trick to land.
After that, the crew was hoping to plant trees for shade, put on a fresh coat of paint, and add picnic tables and a drinking fountain, as well as a small footpath.
In the long run, they would also like to work with the district council to generate funding to add new, permanent, professionally-designed ramps at each end of the park.
“We have a vision for the park and are ticking off what’s the priority,” Janik said.
“Our main group of experienced skateboarders were on the board of trustees getting the Railway Reserve skatepark back in 2009. We have all been skating for around 15-17 years now. We know what a good facility can do for our small communities.
“With skateboarding in the Olympics, we feel it’s essential to have a good facility for us to use where we can upskill and grow to the wider regions.”
A Givealittle fundraising page has been established to help Hauraki Skate grind towards its goal, with $3000 raised so far.
DETAILS: To help, visit givealittle.co.nz and search for ‘Hauraki Skate’. The free, casual skate school runs every Wednesday at 3.30pm at the Norwood Rd Skatepark in Paeroa. Skateboards, and small obstacles can be supplied. For info, email Haurakiskate@gmail.com or find the crew on Facebook.
BY KELLEY TANTAU
