And while it’s called a skate park, this new addition to the local recreation scene isn’t limited to those on skateboards and rollerskates. Scooters, bicycles and anything else that has wheels but no engine is welcome, too.

That was evident Thursday afternoon as one skateboarder, two boys on BMX style bikes and a handful of younger kids on scooters traveled over the park’s curves and dips.

“Everyone’s enjoying it,” Jason Drew said as he watched the kids Thursday afternoon. “Families are enjoying it. It’s just fun to see kids enjoy it.”

Drew is a skateboarder who was a member of a design team that recommended the features to be included in the new park.

-Messenger photo by Bill Shea
Kids on scooters and bicycles enjoy some time at the new skatepark in Fort Dodge Thursday afternoon. The park debuted earlier this summer and is open to skateboards, rollerskates, scooters and bikes.

Those features include quarter pipes, flat rails, an A-frame and a horseshoe bowl.

The new park is located at the north end of the former Sunkissed Meadows Golf Course, which is now a disc golf course. It is near a parking lot and a trail kiosk that includes a marker honoring former U.S. Rep. Tom Latham.

It is about three times bigger than the city’s Dean Hearn Skateboard Park, which is tucked just below and to the west of the North Seventh Street Bridge. That older park will remain open.

The Dean Hearn park opened in the late 1990s. It was championed by the family of Dr. Kevin Schminke. The family convinced city officials to approve the park and then led the effort to raise the money to pay for building it.

After that park had been in use for about 10 years, some skaters started approaching the City Council and city staffers, asking about the possibility of getting a bigger and better park.

Most recently, City Council members Cameron Nelson and Lydia Schuur were contacted by avid skaters interested in a new park. Those council members added the new skate park concept to the city’s list of capital improvement projects.

“This has been brewing for awhile,” said Lori Branderhorst, the city’s recreation director.

The City Council hired Snyder & Associates, of Ankeny, in January 2023 to serve as the project manager at a cost of $70,000.

According to Branderhorst, there were two design meetings at which local skaters provided all the input on proposed features for the park.

“This was their brain child, not mine,” she said.

Spohn Ranch Skateparks, of Los Angeles, California, was hired by the City Council in July 2023 to build the park at a cost of $547,827. The city used $500,000 of its federal COVID relief money to cover most of that cost, with the rest coming from a general obligation bond issue.

Branderhorst said the site was picked because it tied in with the disc golf course, nearby trails and other riverfront improvements, including the recently completed Matt Cosgrove River’s Edge Discovery Center.

“We thought it was a perfect area down here,” she said. “This just seemed logical to put this piece in.”

While people have been using and enjoying the park for weeks, it is technically not finished, according to Branderhorst. She said sod needs to be put down in the area surrounding the park. She said a second phase of work at the park will include installing lighting, a drinking fountain and a bathroom building.