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Project Overview
This project exists because students were trusted with a real question instead of a simulated one.
We were asked to design a skate park from scratch for the community park connected to our school. Not a hypothetical park. Not a model that would sit on a shelf. A real public space that real people would use, return to, and shape over time.
The challenge was open-ended: how do you design a space that supports movement, safety, creativity, and belonging, now and in the future? There was no single correct answer, only decisions that carried consequences.
Our goal wasn’t to create the “perfect” skate park. It was to learn how design decisions affect people, and how listening, math, creativity, and iteration all come together in real-world work where mistakes actually matter.
Why Our Work Matters
We noticed a pattern before we ever drew a line.
Skaters were already here, using sidewalks, stair sets, empty lots, and spaces that weren’t designed for them. That created tension. Some people felt unsafe. Others felt pushed out. The issue wasn’t the skaters. It was the absence of a space that acknowledged them and planned for them intentionally.
This project mattered because public spaces communicate who belongs and who doesn’t. When a community doesn’t design for its young people, it sends a message, even if it’s unintentional, about whose needs are prioritized.
Designing a skate park was our way of responding to that gap. It felt important because it wasn’t about adding something flashy. It was about recognizing movement, play, and creative expression as valid needs in a shared community space that already brings many people together.
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