Anthem’s skatepark expansion could get an unexpected $40,000 addition before construction is complete and a grand opening event is held on March 12, according to Paul Conley, finance manager …
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Anthem’s skatepark expansion could get an unexpected $40,000 addition before construction is complete and a grand opening event is held on March 12, according to Paul Conley, finance manager for the Anthem Community Council.
The addition, which is expected to cost about $39,800, will include a small structure at the entrance staff will use as an indoor offi ce space complete with a desk, computer and air conditioning to be used to help monitor activity at the park as a safety measure, Conley said.
The matter is expected to be approved at the regular Anthem Community Council meeting on Jan. 26. The addition was recommended by the amenities committee at a recent meeting.
“It’s such a big amenity,” Conley said. “...We want to make sure we have the right amount of attention given to it.”
Conley said Anthem offi cials want to try to stick to the March grand opening of the skate park expansion since Anthem Days, an annual event, is scheduled a few weeks later.
He said officials don’t want the events to overlap.
Anthem Days is a free, family-friendly event that typically includes a business expo, craft vendors, carnival, food vendors and entertainment, according to the Anthem website.
In August, Anthem Community Council officials helped break ground on a $1.44 million renovation to expand the existing area skatepark on Gavilan Peak Parkway and Anthem Way and allow a combined space for bicycles, scooters and skateboards.
The renovation will add a new pump track for skaters and replace a 20-year-old area once used for an outdoor hockey area.
Typically, pump tracks are a looping track with bumps and berms used for helping riders keep momentum.
The expansion project is part of the 2016 facilities master plan, a five-year effort that included projects such as a new dog park.
The skatepark project was initially expected to be complete by December.
Conley said the $40,000 will come out of the 2022 fiscal year operating budget and be in addition to the original projected cost of the project.
Brent Ruffner Lead News Reporter | Daily Independent @AzNewsmedia
Journalism has fascinated Brent Ruffner since junior high school.
Since 2001, his stories have been published in newspapers from the Albuquerque to the Arizona and he has always had a knack for making sure his facts are right and his words are to the point.
Growing up, Brent watched as sports reporters covered his beloved Phoenix Suns, a team he followed since Charles Barkley first arrived in Phoenix via trade in 1992. Sports reporting was a dream back then.
But after gaining some writing experience, Brent found a love for news instead of covering different types of sports. In 2008, he moved to New Mexico and covered crime, schools and city beats all while holding elected officials accountable.
He covered stories that ranged from a DEA drug bust gone bad to an award-winning story on school lunches.
In Arizona, Brent was a freelance writer who covered everything from the importance of citrus in the state to Esteban owning a store in downtown Prescott.
Brent is a 2007 graduate of the Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communication at Arizona State University.
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