*** PLEASE USE YOUR STUDENT EMAIL IF YOU'RE A STUDENT ***

When it comes to recreational facilities, Chapel Hill has it all. From pickleball to actual Quidditch, there are resources for almost every activity you could imagine. Except for skateboarding. Skateboarding has recently seen a significant increase in popularity, and the demand for skateboarding on UNC’s campus is no exception. The new UNC Skate Club has over 100 active members, with about 35 people at each weekly event. The demand is there, we pay our tuition, where is our space?

This lack of a designated area to skate creates 3 main issues. Firstly, there is a high number of skateboarders and prospective skateboarders on campus. Unfortunately, skating on flat ground all the time can get boring and repetitive, especially for a beginner. It is unfair that nearly every other activity has either a facility or resources to play their sport or at least recognition of their activity as a club, except skateboarders. This lack of space or recognition by UNC-Chapel Hill discourages beginners from starting to skate. 

 Next is the issue that skating may disturb pedestrians as they are traveling through campus. If there is a dedicated skate spot with obstacles there, skaters won’t have to skate out in public and won’t disturb anyone. 

 Finally, the closest skatepark or skate spot is roughly a 10-15 minute drive, depending on where you live on campus, which is too far for many students, especially those who don’t have a car on campus or don’t have easy access to their car. 

Solution: 

The simple solution to this problem is to create a designated skate spot with obstacles for skaters. There are 2 main ways this can be accomplished. First, Chapel Hill can build an official “skatepark” for students to skate, or they can approve a DIY skate spot to be built by the skateboarding community. Each one comes with its own regulations but both are viable solutions. When finding a space to build, we must consider the noise created by skateboards, the liabilities and regulations, its style and attractiveness as a landmark on campus, and its maintenance. 

Besides the actual skate spot, skateboarding should be promoted on campus. There is already a student-run club with an adult sponsor and a good amount of dedicated members who show up every week to skate. However, this club has not been approved as an official club by UNC. This club should be accepted as an official club of UNC Chapel Hill and they should receive funding and/or promotion from the school. 

Benefits: 

This addition to campus recreation would help to grow the skateboard community on and off campus. It would give Chapel Hill popularity in being one of the first college campuses to create an actual skatepark on campus. Skaters in the surrounding area will come to skate the park which fosters connection among students and other skateboarders.