(Posted 6/15/2002)
The Moraga, California * city council voted 3-2 in favor of accepting an environmental report on the proposed Moraga skatepark * which stated that the noise increase to the nearest house's back yard would be "negligable". The park, which is expected to cost $240,000 to build, has been held in the planning stages "for years".
Detractors of the park cite reasons including "incessant grinding of skateboard wheels *, loud music and vandalism."
Orinda resident Sarah Douglas espoused the opposite opinion succinctly: "It distresses me greatly that in Orinda, Moraga and other communities in this area, it's almost illegal to be a child. We are not entitled to, just because we own houses here, utter solitude and silence."
The park is to be built on a 9,000-square-foot site at the Moraga Commons, in part because of its proximity to public transportation, a choice also approved of by the Editors of SkateboardDirectory.com.
Mayor Michael Majchrzak, who voted for the park, offered another positive angle on the park: "One thing I've heard this evening is that we're going to attract ... young people in who want to have fun. I thought that's what a park was for."
Conceivably, the skatepark will increase use of public transportation, use of nearby public facilities, and business to local stores, thus aiding the economy and well-being of the local economy and community at multiple levels.
The original article was found at http://www.bayarea.com/mld/cctimes/news/local/3462110.htm Search this site for more about Moraga, California Skatepark one step closer... * | 
