Sandwich Skate Park Headed for Demolition

KA_sandwich_skate park_skateboard_030816_011

CCB MEDIA PHOTO Selectmen in Sandwich voted to demolish the Kenneth Benjamin Fleet Skate Park due to safety concerns.

SANDWICH – Selectmen in Sandwich voted last week to demolish the Kenneth Benjamin Fleet Skate Park.

Sandwich Recreation Director Guy Boucher made a recommendation to have the park taken down.

Boucher recently inspected the park with Jeff Siena, a representative from the Massachusetts Interlocal Insurance Assocation, which is the town’s insurer.

“The park is in bad shape,” Boucher said.

Many issues were sited, including cracks in the pavement, a missing portion of fence, broken glass and the addition of concrete structures to the park.

“It is of the opinion of the town insurance company that these new structures plus some of the age, the cracks and things like that, are putting the town in greater liability should someone get hurt.”

KA_sandwich_skate park_skateboard_030816_008Boucher said the park has had issues with vandalism since it was dedicated in 2000 and was almost closed after just four months.

“Myself, the rec committee, numerous volunteers, and users have put a lot of time, their own money and sweat to continuously go to the park and clean it fix it and try to make it a great place,” Boucher said.

Users of the park disagree that the park should be torn down.

Skater Zach Cook said there have been many reasons the park hasn’t worked out.

“I think the main reason is communication through the board and the rec,” Cook said.

Cook doesn’t believe the location is the problem and that the vandals are not the ones using the park.

“It’s more the outside crowd,” he said. “No one that goes to the skate park and actually has love for the skate park is going to go there and treat it like that.”

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