A skatepark is coming to Perinton 

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Perinton Park could house the Rochester region’s next skatepark, according to local and state officials, who announced the project on Thursday.

The skating area, at an estimated price tag of $1.2 million, would sit on the lower edge of the park, bordering the parking lot of O’Connor Road, and cover 11,000 square feet.

Town Supervisor Ciaran Hanna, who announced the project, said town officials and other interested parties have been crafting a plan for the park by visiting other skateparks in the region, like the Roc City Skatepark and the Luke Nelson Skatepark in Medina.

“Some of the input we’ve heard is, ‘Hey, you don’t want an exact replica of a skatepark near here,’ because people might want something different,” Hanna said. “So really, before we start the full design on it and before we’ve contracted with the firm to do the design, we really did want input from local skaters.”

The park is expected to offer learn-to-skate programs and a mixed level of difficulty, according to officials. The town will be collecting input via a public survey. The results of those surveys are scheduled to be reviewed on Sept. 15.

The path to creating the skatepark was forged by a group of town residents and business owners over the past couple years, dubbed the Fairport Skatepark Campaign.

Erik Miller, co-owner of Old Skull Skateboard Shop in Fairport, was among those in the group.

“I grew up in Fairport skateboarding, and my experience was you go to one spot, get kicked out, go to the next spot, get kicked out,” Miller said. “We never really had a place where we could go and work on our skills. Now there’s going to be a designated place for these kids, and adults.”

Quality skateparks in the Rochester region have been scarce. Prior to the opening of the Roc City Skatepark in 2020, the only other parks in Monroe County were modest and somewhat weathered spaces in Webster and Greece.

The latter, at Basil Marella Park, was dismantled during the pandemic, but there are plans to rebuild it.

Hanna, when asked about funding for the park, could not cite a specific source and said the town was still working on the financing.

Jen Lunsford, the Assemblymember representing Perinton’s district, said she is in the process of securing “significant resources” for the project, but declined to comment on exact figures.

“I’m really excited to hear the park is finally coming to fruition,” Lunsford said. “We’ve been working really hard to pull together the resources to make this happen, and I’m excited to be a partner moving forward.”

Perinton Park rests on the edge of the Erie Canal, a short walk from restaurants and breweries in Fairport. Hanna said it’s an ideal spot for a skatepark.

“One of the things I do like about it is the access to it from all over town,” Hanna said. “There’s some easy access to it right from the canal trail… .”

“If kids don’t have a ride to the park,” he went on, “they can get to the park right from their homes.”

Gino Fanelli is a CITY staff writer. He can be reached at (585) 775-9692 or [email protected].