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August 25, 2006

Skating on thin ice in Pelham

As the father of a 14-year-old who seems to go through skateboards like I do golf tees, I’m not surprised that the kids at the Pelham skate park aren’t keeping the place pristine. Anyone who has teenagers knows that their definition of clean is not remotely close to ours.
But what’s been happening at the Pelham skate park seems to be far worse than a few discarded candy wrappers and energy-drink cans. A photo on Page 1 of Friday’s Sun showed a couple of patrons of the park picking up a rather large, unsightly pile of trash. And these kids were spurred into action only because Sun reporter Jen Myers informed them of Parks and Recreation chief Darren McCarthy’s ultimatum: Clean up your act by Monday or the park will shut down indefinitely.
Pelham skate park patrons have rolled down this road before. In March, they faced a similar ultimatum when vandalism and trash became a big problem. Even if they get another reprieve this time, park users need to know that they have two strikes against them, and McCarthy will have no choice to shut down the park for good if problems continue. He might not even give them a third strike. Another Page 1 photo in Friday’s Sun features seven kids at the park. The two kids on bikes are wearing helmets. The five kids with skateboards, including one airborne skater, are not wearing helmets. That’s a violation of park rules, and damning evidence for McCarthy when he decides whether the park stays open.
You’d think the kids would wise up and treat the park right so they wouldn’t mess up a good thing, but for some strange reason I think some can’t help themselves. Here’s my theory:
A lot of suburban kids these days live pretty sheltered — and supervised — lives. I know mine have. I can remember when I was young, I’d take off to Gallows Hill Park or Witchcraft Heights Park in Salem with my friends for the entire day. All my mother knew was that I was “out playing.� I’d make sure I came home for supper. Times have changed, for the worse. We have to keep much closer watch on our kids. Letting an 8-year-old go off to a park with his friends unsupervised in our minds is tantamount to child neglect. Nowadays when our young kids want to play together, it’s at our homes. If they go to a park, it’s with a parent keeping watchful eye over them.
So by the time they get to be teenagers, and parents finally begin to loosen the reins on them, freedom is an entirely new experience for them. Some respect it; others abuse it. That’s what’s happened here in Pelham. I’m sure a lot of kids respect their newfound freedom — and the skate park. It’s the kids who can’t handle their independence who are threatening to ruin it for everyone.
Money is being raised in my hometown, Pepperell, to build a skate park. My son can’t wait to be able to see ramps and quarter-pipes on Town Field. I’d like to think he will abide by the rules and do his part to keep the place clean, and we’ll certainly remind him of that before he heads out the door, helmet in hand. But I also wonder if these skate parks, to avoid any problems, need to be fenced in, staffed, and locked up after dark.
What do you think? Can skaters clean up their act, or do they need to be baby-sat? Is our constant supervision of our children leaving them unable to handle freedom when they finally get it? I’d like to hear from skaters as well as parents.
— Posted by guest host Charles St. Amand, Sun managing editor

Posted by Admin at August 25, 2006 2:49 PM

Comments

Posted by: Pauly at August 28, 2006 9:40 AM