The Skatepark Project

The Tony Hawk Foundation seeks to foster lasting improvements in society through the development of free, quality public skateparks in low-income communities throughout the US. We also support programming that uses skateboarding to reach and enrich the lives of youth in challenged regions throughout the world.

Domestically, it's not simply the creation of a skatepark that THF seeks. It's engaging youth in the process of developing the park. It's the skaters themselves who are typically the catalyst who articulate the need for a safe, sanctioned place to ride--off the street and away from pedestrians and traffic. And through the skatepark-development model outlined by THF staff, the skaters themselves are involved in and carry out much of the planning, community outreach, presentations to local leaders, fundraising, and design work. Once the skatepark is open and their dream of a place to ride safely and call their own becomes a reality, these youth are personally invested in the outcome, and are better stewards of the space from that day forward.

Today, most of the more than 5-million youth who ride skateboards have nowhere safe to skate and practice the sport they love. So they find their own spaces, which often results in confrontations with property owners or law enforcement. The repetition of this process conditions these youth to avoid adults and seek more remote areas to ride.

Skateboarders are athletes who deserve to be recognized for their passion and abilities, and their desire to pursue an active, healthy lifestyle should be encouraged. The THF process of developing a proper public skatepark helps strengthen the relationships between these youth and their communities, and the resulting skatepark provides them a common space to build their own community. It's also a public space where non-skating individuals can come and see the amazingly athletic and artistic things these kids can do on their skateboards, BMX bikes, and scooters. A skatepark is a place for the entire community to come together.

Likewise, skateboarding has proven to attract youth from every culture, every country, and every socio-economic strata. Programs like Skateistan (www.skateistan.org) have used the allure of skateboarding to provide education and other important services to youth on every continent. THF is proud to support the work of Skateistan in Afghanistan, Cambodia, and South Africa, and we look forward to assisting other effective programs in challenged regions throughout the world.

The primary focus of the Tony Hawk Foundation is to help facilitate the development of free, high-quality public skateparks in low-income areas by providing information and guidance on the skatepark-development process, and through financial grants. While not all skatepark projects meet our grant criteria, the Tony Hawk Foundation strives to help communities in other ways to achieve the best possible skateparks—parks that will satisfy the needs of local skaters, provide them a safe, enjoyable place to ride, and promote healthy, active lifestyles.

THF's Advocacy Training Program is our most effective tool to assist communities in their pursuit of free, quality public skateparks. Having worked with hundreds of successful advocacy groups, THF staff have developed (and continue to evolve) a roadmap to creating a successful community skatepark that's designed to maximize the resources local advocates have, and help them locate the resources they need. THF staff field an average of 400 e-mails and phone calls each month. The following are some typical issues we address:

- Getting a skatepark project started
- Lobbying local government
- Liability insurance
- Raising community awareness
- Creating a nonprofit organization
- Fundraising
- Applying for a grant
- Choosing a skatepark designer and/or contractor

The THF Skatepark Grant Program provides funding to help build free public skateparks. The foundation's Board Of Directors reviews grant applications twice a year and issues grants based on merit and available funds. Preference is given to grassroots projects in disadvantaged communities where children have limited recreational opportunities or access to existing skateparks. They also favor projects that demonstrate strong skater involvement. Grants typically range from $5,000 – $25,000. Since 2002, and THF has awarded over 600 grants in all 50 States worth more than $9-million.

The Public Skatepark Development Guide is a 128-page book and interactive Web site (www.skatepark.org) that covers the process of planning and creating a public skatepark. This collaboration between the Tony Hawk Foundation, the nonprofit Skaters For Public Skateparks, and International Association of Skateboard Companies (IASC) is the definitive guide for skatepark advocates and city or parks officials pursuing a new public skatepark. Written by THF Programs Director Peter Whitley, the PSDG draws from the collective wisdom of dozens of veteran skatepark advocates. It's full of in-depth information and illustrations that cover topics ranging from the skatepark vision, advocacy, fundraising, design, and management.

Through strategic partnerships with NGO's in challenged regions of the world, THF is able to provide tactical assistance and funding to programs internationally that enrich the lives of youth through skateboarding. THF is proud to support the work of Skateistan (www.skateistan.org) in Afghanistan, Cambodia, and South Africa.

The Tony Hawk Foundation operates with a staff of seven, guided by a twenty-member all-volunteeer Board Of Directors. THF's Board is comprised of dedicated individuals who contribute their unique talents and tactical or financial resources to fulfill the foundation's mission.

With about 50 of the more than 600 projects THF has helped to fund still incomplete at any given time, Staff monitor and assist each group as needed in order to help them complete their skateparks.

The Tony Hawk Foundation has been assisting communities to develop free, public skateparks across the U.S. since 2002. In that time, hundreds of International projects also received technical assistance from THF staff to help create public skateparks on every continent. In 2014, THF expanded its International work to include financial and tactical support for programs that utilize skateboarding to enrich the lives of youth. The first recipient of this assistance is the Skateistan (www.skateistan.org) organization, which provides educational and counseling services to youth in Afghanistan, Cambodia, and South Africa.

Currently, there are about 3,500 skateparks across the U.S., but approximately 8,000 more are needed just to accommodate all current domestic skateboarders. THF has provided both technical and financial assistance to about 16% of all existing U.S. skateparks, but our work is far from over. Through development and distribution of educational materials online and in print, THF's small staff are better able to meet the growing demand for technical assistance.

THF's growth into formal International programming is having a dramatic effect on the ability of our international Partner, Skateistan, to find additional support and deliver critical educational and counseling services to youth in Afghanistan, Cambodia, and South Africa. THF's support for Skateistan's work, and other potential International Partners, will continue to grow alongside the domestic skatepark programs.