A Skateboard Park Study completed in 2017 identified a deficiency of skateparks in the City of Hamilton for wheeled sports, a sport growing rapidly in popularity within the area. With input from the public, Valley Park was selected as the best suited site to develop the City’s first community skatepark to accommodate a variety of wheeled sports.
Dillon's landscape architecture, urban design, and municipal engineering teams partnered with New Line Skateparks, a highly experienced skatepark design-build firm in North America, to complete the conceptual and detailed design of the skatepark, and MJS Consultants Inc., for the lighting and electrical needs of the park. Dillon also provided contract administration services to oversee the construction of the park.
A comprehensive public engagement strategy was undertaken with the City through in-person workshops, open houses, and online surveys to gather input from the local neighbourhood and riding community that helped inform the design of the skatepark and new park amenities, and to ensure the park becomes a well used community asset for generations to come.
The layout of the terrain features follows the existing topography of the site in order to minimize grading efforts needed for the construction of the facility. Movement between the various terrain features is fluid, with a generous amount of open space allowing users to transition from one terrain to another safely. Pedestrian lighting around the skatepark provides users with a safe park space to use throughout the evening, within the designated park hours. The skatepark also encourages non-active users to use the facility and boasts five different points of accessible entry to the skatepark. The park entrances and pathway system improve pedestrian connections to the Community Centre, outdoor washroom facility, parking lot, public transit, and existing trail network. Additional grading efforts were undertaken to improve site drainage with the incorporation of low impact development measures. An accessible gathering space located at the north side of the facility provides spectators with a sheltered place to watch the action and cheer on their fellow riders!