Mayor and City council of Moorpark: Consider allowing bicycles into the Moorpark skatepark

Consider allowing bicycles into the Moorpark skatepark

Greetings,

I just signed the following petition addressed to: Mayor and City council of Moorpark.

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Consider allowing bicycles into the Moorpark skatepark

An ordinance was adopted when the Moorpark Skatepark opened and we, the signed below, believe now is an appropriate for it to be revised to allow BMX bicycles to be ridden in the public park.

We are requesting that ordinance 392 section 12.16.190(A) “Skate Facility” be modified to read as follows; “A. Only individuals riding skateboards, in-line skates scooters and bicycles are authorized to use the city’s skate facility. No motorized vehicles are permitted to be operated in the skate facility.”

The local Skateparks in City of Ventura, Camarillo, Santa Clarita, ‘The compound’ in Perris California and numerous others have all worked through these issues and have come up with a ‘mixed use’ plan for the Skatepark that includes bicycle riders as well as skaters.

Just because the term 'Skatepark' doesn't have the word 'bike' in it doesn't mean bikes don't belong. 'Skatepark' has become a generic term for ramp facility, in the same way that Xerox has become a generic term for photocopies, or Kleenex for facial tissues—it's simple and easy to say.

To date there hasn’t been any documented conflicts between the bicycle riders, skateboarders and scooter riders. Many things have changed with the attitudes of those who participate in these sports. BMX racing is an Olympic sport, there are specialized contests for alternative sports (X-Games) and many things in our society have changed since the early days when there were perceived conflicts between skaters and BMX riders.

One of the early complaints was that BMX bikes, by their design and the way they are ridden, are destroying Skateparks. Critics said that pegs and pedals grind the surface and coping of parks, and that, over time, the damage can cause potential hazards for skaters. This can be true of old, poorly built parks that were not designed to current specifications, particularly in terms of concrete density.
However, new, well-constructed parks should not show abnormal signs of wear from BMX use. In fact, the Skate Parks Association (SPA/USA) has been conducting research on parks for several years and has not found evidence that bikes cause more damage than skateboards or inline skaters. (See spausa.org/bikes-parks.html for more information.)

Some critics of BMX maintain that more accidents occur in parks where bikers and skaters ride together, and that these accidents tend to be more severe. However, according to a study commissioned by Portland (OR) Parks & Recreation, there's no substantial data to support this theory. In fact, many parks have seen no increase in accidents at all since they've opened their gates to BMX riders.
Cities often balk at the idea of opening an existing park to BMX riders because they fear that accidents could lead to costly litigation. Contrary to popular belief, most companies that insure municipalities don't consider public Skateparks to be a high risk. In fact, slides, swing sets, and monkey bars in public parks often require higher premiums than Skateparks. This article from Insurance Journal provides more information.

In conclusion, this is a simple modification to an existing ordnance that will allow more access to a public facility that should be available to everyone regardless of what they ride.

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Sincerely,

[Your name]