Albany City Commission set to vote on skate park funding

ALBANY – Southwest Georgia’s skateboard community got a dose of good news this week with a recommendation to spend $500,000 on a new skate park. That wasn’t all, though. The recommendation comes with a bid to put the structure in the same location as the one that was demolished.

The demolition came in December 2024 in preparation for the demolition and replacement of the Oglethorpe Boulevard bridge. The construction contractor used the site of the former skate park as a staging area.

“There have been other sites discussed,” Albany City Manager Terrell Jacobs said. “Based on information (from) the community, we decided on the current site. That’s the only site we’re looking at right now.”

Previously, Tift Park was proposed as a potential location for the new park, but the local skate community was adamant about returning to the original location. Skate park consultants who visited the site said it is an excellent site, Albany Recreation and Parks Director Steven Belk said.

“The location is good; it attracts a lot of people,” Belk, who made the recommendation to consider the site at a Tuesday commission meeting, said. “It has a lot of history.”

The same consultants told Albany officials that the requested allotment was an adequate amount to construct the park, the recreation director said. The funding would come from special-purpose local-option sales tax funds earmarked for recreation.

“(Consultants) say the $500,000 is enough for the square footage of that property,” Belk said. “It will be a wonderful facility. It will be for bikes, roller blades. … Anything with wheels, you’re going to be able to enjoy.”

Albany’s recreational facilities are enjoying a renaissance with renovations and replacements at several facilities.

“I think in the next three years, things are going to be so bright people are literally going to have to wear shades,” Belk said. “Recreation is a part of improving how we live and how we work and how we play. I’m excited about the future.”

The commission is scheduled to vote on the recommendation at its July 28 meeting, which starts at 6 p.m.