How the Olympics Fueled a Push for Better Skate Parks

For a long time, skateboarding was a pastime associated with punk culture, and practiced under highways, beneath subway tracks and in other spaces on the fringes of cities. But three years ago, something changed: Skaters started to grind at the Olympic Games, first in Tokyo and now in Paris, where the park skateboarding competitions are happening today and tomorrow.

Interest in the sport has since boomed, fueling a push for more skate parks — or rather, skate gardens. These spaces mix skateable elements with amenities like greenery, seating and shade, offering opportunities to show that skate parks don’t have to be concrete jungles in undesirable locations, but can be integrated into a large park environment. Read more by contributor Alexandra Lange, today on CityLab: Skate Parks Are Growing Up