Ryan Wiskerchen

I owned a skateboard as a young boy until my mother backed the car over it coming out of the garage. I did play Tony Hawk Pro Skater video games on the computer and enjoy a lot of the aesthetics of the skateboarding culture; my go-to brand of shoes is Vans for that reason. We have a skate park at the park where my family and I live now and I appreciate the chance to see our community's young people enjoy that amenity and develop their coordination and fitness through a uniquely appealing sport. While I have not had the chance to develop close friendships with any skateboarders, I'd be happy to do so, although I certainly could not keep up on a board!

No

As I stated above, we have a very nice skatepark at my local park, only a few blocks from my home, but I think that there are opportunities to expand the accessibility and visibility of the sport for current and new skateboarders in Richfield.

Skateboarding has a wonderful quality in that it is a sport which boils down to physical fitness, training, and skill. In this sport, skateboarders are allowed to prove themselves based on those factors and are free to excel insofar as they can outperform the competition in those same areas.

In our area, as a first-ring suburb of Minneapolis, there is a healthy system of parks which I would like to see reflect the needs and desires of the community they serve. That means establishing clearer lines of communication and responsiveness to community concerns and wants. It is very rewarding to see people of all ages gather outside at these spaces, especially young people who are at risk of losing in-person friendships and tangible experiences to the siren song of the digital world.

Yes