Montauk Skate Park Opens On Epic Day For Community

“Epic.”

That was the word used over and over again by those in attendance at the grand opening of the Montauk Skate Park on Friday afternoon.

The event was the culmination of a public-private partnership that led to the renovation and expansion of a community skate park that was originally designed and built by New York City skateboarding legend Andy Kessler in 1999.

Kessler was a frequent visitor to Montauk and died in 2009 due to an allergic reaction to a bee sting. But he left his mark on the area. The Essex Street park quickly became a popular hangout for skateboarders. In more recent years, however, it became clear it was in need of not only a renovation but also expansion to meet the growing demands of a local community that has always embraced the often related disciplines of surfing and skating and the culture that accompanies both.

A group of like-minded individuals that either live full-time in Montauk or have strong ties to the area teamed up to form the Montauk Skate Park Coalition, with the goal of uniting stakeholders in the park — which is housed on state land but owned and run by the Town of East Hampton — and working toward the common goal of a large-scale renovation.

The coalition included people like Montauk residents Lindsay Speranza, John Britton, Walt Lindveld and Bart Schwarz, as well as JJ Veronis, a longtime friend of Kessler and a renowned New York City graffiti artist.

The group worked together to secure donations and raise funds to cover a large portion of the cost of the $1 million project, while the Town of East Hampton also kicked in some money. The project had the support of East Hampton Town Councilman David Lys, who was a big proponent from the start, and he was there for the ribbon-cutting ceremony on Friday along with East Hampton Town Supervisor Peter Van Scoyoc.

Also on hand on Friday was Tito Porrata, the lead designer for Pivot Custom, which designed the skate park. Porrata is a renowned skate park designer who has had his hand in parks all over the country and internationally as well, and he said what he experienced in working with the Montauk Skate Park Coalition was special and rare.

“There’s not that many times that I’ve seen it all go so successfully,” he said. “The grand opening was so crowded and everyone was so passionate, but it was all done organically and was such a pure community effort. The crew and everyone involved in this project is leaving emotionally attached, and that’s something that doesn’t always happen. This one was definitely one of a kind. The whole thing was just epic.”

During the course of the design and install — which took just 20 months — Porrata and his crew, including fellow Pivot Custom designer-builder Ben Horan, made several visits to the area and had plenty of conversations and town hall-style meetings with residents to gather their input on what they wanted to see in the park. The result was a “custom park” that Porrata said is “strictly tailored to what everyone needed in the community.”

The park includes a rebuild of the pool bowl that had been a signature of Kessler’s original design, and the team also added a shallower, less steep and more forgiving “flow bowl” as well as a street course. Another popular feature is the snake run, which is great for beginners and longboard riders who want to cruise around or are just learning. One feature at the end of the snake run looks like a curling wave, an appropriate nod to the town’s surfing culture.

The fact that the park will have broad appeal for community members of all ages and ability levels was clear on Friday. Experienced skaters relished the vertical drop into the pool bowl and wowed spectators, while children as young as 4 cruised around the snake run on skateboards and scooters, wearing brightly colored helmets adorned with stickers.

Porrata said it was great seeing all the love the community showed for the skate park and the hard work his crew put in designing it. Porrata said it was also special to honor the memory of Kessler, who he counted as a friend, and to give new life to a skate park he first visited back in the late 1990s. But he said honoring that past while freshening up the park with modern sensibilities was key as well.

“Our focus is ultimately on respect for the past but mostly on the future,” he said. “This park is there now for the unborn skater.”

Veronis was equally stoked about the finished product and the way the day unfolded. He smiled and laughed with people visiting the park as he grilled hamburgers and hot dogs before helping to emcee the official ribbon-cutting ceremony later in the day.

“It was beyond expectation,” he said. “It was just such an epic day and such an incredible culmination of months of work and a dream we had that started two years ago. To see it come to fruition, it’s just one of the greatest projects and experiences I’ve ever been involved in.”

Both Porrata and Veronis said they hope the skate park and the way it came together will serve as a model for other East End communities interested in doing the same thing. There are several other skate parks in the area, including one at the Southampton Town Recreation Center off Majors Path in Southampton, and another at Red Creek Park in Hampton Bays, neither of which have been remodeled or renovated in recent years.

The fact that Montauk is a very long drive from anywhere else on Long Island — particularly on Friday in late August — did not deter skaters, many of whom made the trek from Sag Harbor, Southampton, west of the Shinnecock Canal and as far as Nassau County and New York City with boards, bikes or scooters to check out the park, proving that skateboarding — which recently became an Olympic sport — has enduring and even growing appeal.

“What this project also does is lend a really encouraging lens to those in the East End community that want to do something positive like this and get in done in the right way,” Veronis said. “ A lot of projects can stall out, but this didn’t, and I’m really proud of that. It was really harmonious. I hope it helps to seed other projects.”

Veronis added that there are still some finishing touches set to be put on the park in the coming days, like a few landscaping finishes. He said the skaters are also looking forward to the addition of a water fountain.

The park will host its first skate contest on Saturday, September 24. The Andy Kessler Memorial Skate Contest will run from 1 to 7 p.m., with cash and prizes offered for winners in several different divisions.