Kids in Ellicottville, New York, will now be able to get some exercise and have some fun at the same time.
After three years of fundraising and a year of construction, the town's new skate park opened its doors to the public Friday, the Buffalo News reports.
"Just imaginea little community like Ellicottville has a beautiful, half-million-dollar concrete, in-ground skate park due to the leadership of Chris and Brenda Perks," says the town's mayor.
"We now have a state-of-the-art facility that welcomes all ages, all skill levels, and, most importantly, a safe space where our youth can be active, develop friendships, and express themselves through the sport of skateboarding."
The project was funded in part by a $100,000 donation from the New Car Dealers of WNY Charitable Foundation, as well as a matching grant from the Skatepark Project and the Ralph C.
Wilson Jr.
Foundation.
The foundation's president says the group got into building skate parks in the region because there was a lack of green space for kids to play.
"That's stopping with the park builds," he says.
The group plans to build 13 more in the region.
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To address the ongoing issue of student dropouts, Toronto District School Board (TDSB) teacher Craig Morrison started a school-business program called the Oasis Skateboard Factory (OSF) to help keep teens stay in school.