I would like to take a moment and thank Parks and Recreation Director Cathy Metz and Police Chief Jim Spratlen for their accessibility and responsiveness to local families, skate shop business owners and community health organizations. Recently, a group called State of the Skate met with Metz and Spratlen to share their observations and concerns about the condition and atmosphere of the Durango Skate Park.

The group requested their help and input to create a skate park “sanctuary” for kids to use – a place where kids could have fun and feel safe in a healthy environment. It was determined that in large part the problems were caused by those not skating at the park and, in fact, using the park as a hangout.

After listening to the issues presented by the State of the Skate participants, both Metz and Spratlen responded swiftly and decisively. The park was recently closed for a week to address some of the concerns.

I invite the community to walk through the skate park to see the improvements to the landscaping, parking, cleanliness and, most importantly, the safety features. Both Spratlen and Metz should be commended for taking swift action to improve an important and valuable gem in our downtown community.

They also challenged us to continue strong community involvement by encouraging all of us to act as ambassadors for the park while we use the Animas River Trail by stopping, observing and reporting any problem activities.

Karen Rowan

Durango