The intended location is Echo Park at the existing skate park with an expansion into the forested area along Kendall Avenue.

The location was chosen based on user demand, zoning, accessibility, and proximity to supporting infrastructure:

      ✔ Close to major transit routes and stops

      ✔Close to bike lanes

      ✔ Central location

      ✔ Close to washrooms

      ✔ Close to trailheads

      ✔ Close to other recreation facilities and sites

      ✔ Does not interfere with existing recreation infrastructure  

      ✔Close to other youth-friendly facilities

      ✔ Already zoned P2 - Parks and Recreation

      ✔ Already located in the Sports & Academic Precinct

      ✔ 150+ parking spaces nearby plus wheelchair accessible parking

      ✔ No other competing land use

      ✔ Next door to Echo Fieldhouse

      ✔ Suitable site for hosting sporting events

      ✔ Outside of flood zone

      ✔ Can accommodate the size of the proposed park

      ✔ The preferred location identified by user groups

"All-wheels" Park for activities like skateboarding, BMX, and scooter

Pump Track

Mountain Bike Jump Lines

Mountain Bike Skills Park

Individual features and overall design will be influenced by feedback from the community. As the park is still in the early stages, request for feedback has not yet been issued.

Age: Port Alberni's skatepark was built in the 1990s and is one of the oldest remaining parks in the province. It has been assessed by industry professionals and at this stage of its life, it can no longer be restored.

A new build will address the major changes that have taken place in the areas of design standards, maintenance and user safety.

Lack of Flow : There is no flow to the design, requiring more 'pushing' and less 'riding'. Park users should be able to move seamlessly through multiple features of a park.

Not enough features: There is more empty space than there are 'rideable' elements.

Too challenging: Park standards have changed. Most of the park's featured are challenging and dangerous for newcomers.

Safety: Decades of weathering have eroded the surface, slowing the movement of wheels and contributing to injuries from minor falls.

• Like and share park updates from our Facebook page.
• Join the email list for park updates.
• Sign up to volunteer or contribute in a different way to the park.
• Participate in public engagement opportunities from the City of Port Alberni as part of the Parks Recreation & Culture Master Plan and Official Community Plan.
• Become a member of Riders of the Alberni Valley
• Join the Riders of the Alberni Valley Facebook group
• Join the Alberni Valley Skatepark Association Facebook group

Survey to the Alberni Valley Skatepark Association

44% of respondents gave the current skateboard park an "F" letter grade rating.

2024 Community-wide Online Survey

88% of 1,000 respondents supported creation of a new Adventure Sport Park.

Doesn't Port Alberni already have a skateboard park? Yes, but it was built in the 1990s and may be the oldest skatepark in the province. It has been assessed by industry professionals and is beyond repair.

Will all of the trees be cut down? No. The desire is to retain as many trees as possible. Forests are part of the mountain biking experience.

Will the skatepark area be noisy? Skateboarding noise is negligible at 50 feet and produces similar noise levels as a playground. A skatepark produces fewer decibels than normal street noise, and is almost on par with conversational speech. The park is 375 feet from the nearest residence and the elementary school in the same vicinity produces more noise than the park.

See the noise study conducted by the City of Portland, Oregon.

Is there enough parking? In the immediate vicinity of the park there are 148 parking spaces.

What about lighting? User groups identified lighting as a priority. The park design will take lighting into consideration.