Hoops, is that also the excuse for all the bars in Janesville for adults? A place such as a skate park does not have to be a breeding grounds for crime. Think about it. I wish that something of this type and like the Frisbee golf at Lustig were available while I was growing up and also when my children were growing up. Janesville needs constructive CHEAP activities for our future generations. Crime occurs when they are "bored". I know, when we were young, "bored" was not part of our vocabulary, but kids today need to be entertained, don't ask me why! JMO

If the skate supporters can't raise their part, the taxpayers shouldn't even be talking about a location. IMO, that is like putting an offer on a home without any financial backing. It just wastes city councils time and taxpayers money.

Skate parks can be magnets for graffiti, drug use/selling, and other awful behavior if they're not in a well-travelled area. Beloit's newest skate park near their new corner pharmacy is a good example of a good placement.

janesvillian, You may also take heed. I am informed. But, go ahead personal jabs work here. I don't mind. Everyone here knows whom are those that do. I noticed you didn't make a contributing comment on either subject? May I ask why?

RoadMaster, I voted. But, if you count how many vote on un-eventful elections? Yaddah self imposed results. Janesville has how many voters? What minute % turned out AGAIN for the local important vote?
That is why I suggested Nov. To Open Eyelids.
How many goto city meetings? How many get active and not just blog about things?
That is the true point RoadMaster. That is what I was saying.

luvinlife, you sound like a bigot! Did you watch a lot of "All in the Family"? What is wrong with "that side of town"? I have lived on the southside most of my live and have never had any problems. When my kids were young and I was divorced we lived 2x in the fourth ward with absolutely no problems. A lot of the homes there are owned by elderly folks and are well kept. The only reason I see for people living there is cheap rent. Hope your children do not grow up with your prejudice!

That park would be perfect for the gangs to hang out at, but maybe they thought about bout that already to "lump" all the people together. With gangs come bulling and drug sales and use like Janesville does not have a problem with this already, What my concern is insurence for all the kids that will be getting hurt, trying hard and skilled tricks they have no skill doing.

The skatepark would be an asset to the community and the kids need it. But the skatepark is a prime example of the ineptitude of our City Council over the last several years.

Think of all the time that's been wasted, both for citizens and staff! First the Council had a group of volunteer citizens study several potential sites for the skatepark in depth. After the commission considered all options, it recommended Lions Park. The Council didn't like Lions. The Council could have referred the matter back to the commission for additional study, but instead the Council chose to announce Palmer Park as the site. This approach caused the chair of the committee to resign immediately, and who could blame him since he and the rest of his group of volunteers spent countless hours studying many sites only to have the Council reject its recommendation with less than an hour's deliberation? To give the council some credit, at at least the skatepark group finally had a site so they could start toward their goal of raising money for the park. But the group then proceeded to raise only $26,000 in five years (this is roughly $14 per day). So now, on that track record, the the City Council has instructed staff (not volunteers) to spend time looking at all these other sites again! Why? This story doesn't give the council's reason. But it can't be because the council is convinced that this group can raise the money if only a different site is picked, because no one could ever say that a Palmer Park site hurt their fundraising efforts. (By the way, is there even a nonprofit group like Youth Hockey, YMCA, Youth Soccer, Youth Baseball/Softball involved here? Or is it just a group of private people represented by Mr. Streich? Maybe part of the problem is lack of leadership on the skatepark side.) So the council's reason for going back on a decision the council made in 2005 is a mystery. Maybe people who didn't like the Palmer location kept objecting until a new council decided the earlier council was wrong to pick Palmer Park in the first place. But this indecision is just more of the same from the council and is almost worse than the continuing indecision on sidewalk policy. The wasted time and effort is just astonishing.

By the way, one thing makes this even more incredible. When the group trying to raise funds for the ice arena recently came back to the Council to ask that alternate sites be considered (because donors were asking about sites other than the south side), the City Council said "we decided this already" and refused to have City staff study alternate sites! Even though the ice arena project would cost millions more than the skatepark and even though group raising money for the ice arena has already raised a lot more than the skatepark group, with more than $600,000 committed toward an ice arena already! This is the same council that is having staff look at new sites for the skatepark!

I am very sorry to hear the location of the skate park. My son was looking forward to having a skate park in Janesville. He will not be going in that neighborhood to skate. I am not concerned with the other skaters just the others in that area that will see this as an opportunity to rip people off.
Sorry if that seems harsh, but it is reality.

NVgrf wrote "dalegribble, the conscience of Janesville. And I thought Ken Peterson left town."

Now, don't get all defensive here NV.

But please explain, having lived and taught in Janesville for many years, why you would paint most of Janesville's citizens with such a broad brush.

Was your experience here really so negative that you would try to portray the consensus of the majority of the citizens as conforming to one ignoramus?

Seriously.

dalegribble....have you been to the skate park in Beloit? How is it like a ghetto? The park is located right next to a brand new fire station, on a major road. I have taken my kids there multiple times and have never had any trouble. Get out of your house and check it out sometime. How easy it is for you to judge people by their appearance.

oh and the reader poll is bogus. a fifth choice should be "don't build it." that choice would clearly win.

Streich has been raising money for years. The benchmark has always been "he needs to raise $250,000."
IF there was interest, he would have raised more than $26,000. So like most people nowadays, if they can't get it done themselves, they get a government bailout.
Streich said, "a skate park someplace is better than no park at all."
NONSENSE!
Our community has spoken on this issue time and time again. The answer was, is and always will be: NO
Give it up already.

Will the same respect that the ice rink group got when they could not raise the money they agreed too be extended to the skate park group. Will they get to pick a new location and a deadline with no end date and still be handed their funds to build the park?

I knew it before even reading the comments here, quit being so negative, atleast this will give our children a safe place to skate. The race card should not be played in this situation and the so called "gangs" will not ruin this if it is well supervised. Janesville needs entertainment for our children, they have nothing constructive to do that is why there is so much crime by the younger generation. When this idea (skatepark) first came about, I said it was a good idea to put it at Monteray. Kids can go to Lustig park and frisbee golf then walk to Monteray and skate. What is wrong with that? Maybe they will even fish alittle, very good for them to do. I see no problem with this and am very happy it is being done.

dalegribble, the conscience of Janesville. And I thought Ken Peterson left town.

re: dalegribble... ". Fence it all in, and pay an annual admission for something like this. It will keep the rif-raf out"

Why is it assumed that skaters are rif-raf? And, since when is Janesville worried about rif-raf? They charge money for alcohol in bars, and that doesn't keep the rif-raf out. Also, why is it assumed rif-raf doesn't have money?

WOW!!!! You are racist one aren't you! Every time I've been to the Beloit part there is a good mix of kids who some happen to be black. So what? now they are all ghetto kids? Go back to your klan rally and leave this conversation to the adults please.
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FWIW if you have ever been to The Pipe you would know that there is no supervision, the "adult" sits at a desk in a office collecting money while the kids run around destroying everything in site. If the park was ran like 4seasons in Madison I would support it a lot more, but it's not - so it time for it to go.

I guarantee that the $50,000 proposed for the skatepark will be used by a lot more people than the $11 million for the new ice rink. I support this plan, however I do hope the rest of the money can be raised that is needed.
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And before people start asking about the current private skatepark in Janesville (The Pipe). It is a poorly ran place that is not worth th $7 dollar admission.

NeoBartly
Apr 6, 2010 at 4:54 p.m.
You wrote~
(...Taking away the freedom to do what a person wants to their purchased property. Allowing OTHERS to command what you do and how you do it? Hmmm, sounds a bit like another countries Era that had totalitarian rule. Definitly something wrong with local Tzars.)and it's Czars not Tzars.

The problem here is that it is NOT their purchased property, you may need to read this again. They are asking for tax dollars for this and I still say NO WAY! If they want it bad enough they can figure out a way to raise the money themselves, insure it themselves and maintain it themselves, much like we had to do and did with our BMX track years ago! No tax dollars were spent then and during our current economic situation this is nothing more than another luxury that the city's tax payers cannot afford and should not even be asked to. They have only been able to raise just over 10% of what they needed to come up with, enough is enough..... Its a shame NeoBarty that you didn't realize that today is the elections not in November!

NeoBartly apparently hasn't heard about zoning. Wait until he finds out about that one. Then voting for the city council in November will be the least of his worries.

I am sorry to bust your bubble Dale. I go by that park three to four times a week and at different times. For the past month there has been no less then 20 kids and young adults using the park at any given time. I also see days when there are more then 75 using it. Every skate park around the county is heavly used and the same will hold true in Janesville if they ever build one.

NeoBartly, the city council elections are today, not in November.

...Taking away the freedom to do what a person wants to their purchased property. Allowing OTHERS to command what you do and how you do it? Hmmm, sounds a bit like another countries Era that had totalitarian rule. Definitly something wrong with local Tzars.

Dumb Ideas roll rampid with this City Planning.
I am sorry, but I sure hope people relive these poor choices come election day Nov.
Watch for increases in the Public Record section after this is set up.