Alex Road Skatepark will close two weeks for repairs

OCEANSIDE — Attention, skateboarders: Alex Road Skatepark will be closed for two weeks beginning Oct. 23 to allow city crews uninterrupted time to perform repairs to park bowls, ramps and facilities.

Kiel Koger, city public works director, said the 22,700-square-foot destination is in “good condition.” Repair work is part of routine park maintenance to address daily wear and tear caused by constant use of the popular park.

“The metal coping on the bowls and ramps is worn out and needs replacing as well as some minor concrete repair in the park,” Koger said.

Other regular maintenance work that will be take place over the two weeks is vandalism cleanup.

“We have been constantly dealing with vandalism to the bathroom facility, graffiti (and) property damage on site since it was built,” Koger said.

Park rules spell out no graffiti, tagging or stickers are allowed. The regulations are sometimes ignored; in part this is due to skateboarding tradition.

Veteran skateboarders say graffiti is a historic part of the skating culture. Decades ago it was used to mark skateboarding locations when the sport was performed by a rugged few in empty swimming pools and cement drainage ditches.

To deter skatepark vandalism, Oceanside police regularly patrol the remote park site, which is located next to the San Luis Rey River Trail.

Park users are also encouraged to call the city Parks and Recreation office if vandalism, broken equipment or facility disrepair are spotted.

Alex Road Skatepark is the city’s newest and largest skatepark. It opened in 2013, and offers street features, two bowls that range from 4 feet to 12 feet in depth, and two snake runs. The state-of-the-art park was designed by Grindline Skateparks and built by California Skateparks.

The skatepark is locally referred to as “Prince Park,” in memory of professional Oceanside skateboarder Michael Prince Johnson, who passed away about a month before the park opened.

Oceanside has a total of five skateparks. Each park offers different skateboarding courses.

Martin Luther King Skatepark, located on Mesa Drive, and Melba Bishop Skatepark, located at North River Road, both opened in 2008.

Martin Luther King Skatepark is a 6,000-square-foot cement park that offers vert, street and tranny courses.

Melba Bishop Skatepark is an 8,000-square-foot cement park. It offers a street-style course with low inclines.

John Landes Skatepark, located on Lewis Street, and Libby Lake Skatepark, located on Calle Montecito, both opened in 2003.

The two parks are built on blacktop lots and feature basic layouts of small wood and steel ramps.

All city skateparks are free to the public, unstaffed and require riders to wear helmets. The parks are open during daylight hours.

Future city plans are to remodel John Landes and Libby Lake skateparks. Oceanside also has its sights set on constructing an additional skatepark at El Corazon Park, and adding a skateboarding area to the beach.