Perinton unveils skatepark designs 

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The town of Perinton and California-based skatepark designer Spohn Ranch have released a pair of plans for a skatepark to be built in Perinton Park.

The plans were revealed at a public input session Tuesday evening, and outline a park design unlike any in the Rochester area. Both designs feature a bowl, various street skating obstacles, and a pump track — a long, flowing segment of park designed for speedy cruising on both bikes and skateboards.

Such a feature was requested for the Roc City Skatepark under the Frederick Douglass-Susan B. Anthony Bridge, but couldn’t be built due to limitations on how far down crews could dig at the site.

The two designs were informed by input from about 200 residents. The designs offer a template for the park and are expected to change with more community feedback.

“The idea here is I still want to take all of your guys’ feedback and tweak and play with these designs,” said Jason Baldessari, skatepark developer at Spohn Ranch.

Baldassari said he expects work to begin on the park over the summer and to be skateable by the end of the year.

The Perinton Skatepark is not the first local project for Spohn Ranch. The organization was also behind the Luke Nelson Skatepark in Medina in Orleans County, a concrete skate plaza completed in 2020 popular with skaters. The company is also behind the new skatepark in the town of Sweden, which began construction last year.

The Perinton Skatepark is budgeted at $1.2 million, and marks the end of a long road of advocacy by local skaters and families.

The bulk of the funding for the park comes in the form of a $1 million state grant, secured by Assemblymember Jen Lunsford.

While the Roc City Skatepark was completed in 2020 and is expected to expand in the near future, it represents one of only a handful of quality skateparks in the region.

For example, Greece’s skatepark at Basil Marella Park was dismantled during the pandemic and replaced by a sensory playground. Meanwhile, Webster’s skatepark, a weathered and barebones set of concrete structures, has remained unchanged for over a decade.

The Perinton Skatepark will take up about 11,000 square feet in a portion of the parking lot of Perinton Park.

“We’re really excited about this project transforming the lower section of Perinton Park from a parking lot and open space into a usable, accessible space for our entire community,” said Jeff Nutting, Commissioner of Parks and Recreation for the Town of Perinton.

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