Initial construction begins on long-planned Nipomo skate park

NIPOMO, Calif. -- The first phase of construction has started on the long-planned and much-awaited Nipomo Skate Park.

On Monday, tractors arrived to the site located with Nipomo Community Park adjacent to the Nipomo Library.

"This is like winning the lottery," said Nipomo Skate Club advisor Tom Slater. "It's like winning the lottery for the kids in Nipomo, the skaters right now, they lost the rec (makeshift skate park) just last year. They don't have a place to skate,so we're all celebrating skaters across Nipomo are ecstatic that this park is really going to become reality."

At the same time initial construction began at the park, the Board of Supervisors voted Tuesday to award the bid on the project.

The agenda report lists the winning project bid to JJ Fisher Construction, Inc. in the amount for $2,640,863.

The winning bid came about $1 million over budget, so supervisors had to approve supplemental funding to fill in the difference.

Supervisors approved an internal loan to make up the difference with a unanimous 5-0 vote.

"We were afraid it was going to maybe drag out another couple of years if this vote didn't come together and the extra funds didn't get approved, but we got it and it's time to build," said Slater. "I just can't believe it. I'm still just pinching myself that this is finally happening."

The skate park has long been proposed for the Nipomo. The Nipomo Community Park Master Plan, adopted by the Board of Supervisors in 2012, included a skate park as one of the recreation features desired by the community.

In October 2017, the Board of Supervisors approved a consulting services contract for design and engineering
services for the skate park. The design process included community workshops and public input resulting in a design to meet the needs and wants of the local community.

“We designed this park with a group of community skateboarders in our community," said skateboarder Wyatt Russell. "We worked with a former pro skateboarder and designed it, so it's designed by skaters with a pro skater, and it's just come out perfect. The blueprints are so pristine and so pretty. It's probably going to have great flow and probably be the best park in the area.”

Russell said he's been waiting for the skatepark for about 10 years. He added the park will give skaters, both young and old alike, a place to call home, rather than having to go out of town to other facilities.

“It's going to mean a lot for skateboarding, really, and a lot for people who don't skate because there's going to be new skaters, and it's going to probably make the sport a lot bigger in the area," said Russell. “It's going to be a super awesome facility. It's going to be probably be the best park in the area and train a lot of really good skateboarders.”

With funding now secure, full construction of the park is scheduled to begin in summer 2022, with completion either winter 2022 or early 2023.

The overall cost of the project is estimated to be approximately $3,259,949.