I don't mean to hyjack the topic, but don't you love it when people hear you but don't listen? You talk about something over and over, giving details and asking for ideas. They even respond to make you believe they understood you. Then at the last moment, they wake up like sleep walkers and say, "Wait, no. That's what you meant? Oh, I don't like that a bit."

I really sympathize. I like the idea of asking how to make it unattractive to skateboarders. I have to laugh at not telling them where you are talking about. You don't want to advertise to them. [img]smile.gif[/img]

We had jack rocks in our playground, not pea gravel, huge jack rocks. When a child was hurt it felt like you were running in place trying to get to him. They got into shoes and caused bruises, they were pocketed by little rock collectors which then were dropped on the tile and slid on, there were rock fights, and the rocks would get on the sidewalks and it was like walking on marbles. We started the talking about mulch in 2000, 2001 we said we are going for the mulch, everyone was gung ho even though it would be costly. Budgets and extra fundraisers were planned by member approval. 2002 after much hard work people started saying "I don't know." I was at my wits end. I was president with all kinds of ideas but I was immoblized by mulch, all I could see was mulch. The other elementary across the county hadn't had good luck. Someone mentioned they didn't want their child's socks to get dirty and another mentioned they didn't want to pay $100.00 for shoes for them to get ruined. OK, what did they think the rocks were doing? And these were the same people who had been at the meetings where mulch was discussed nearly every time. In 2003 we finally got our mulch. I was prepared for all the griping and the only thing I ever heard was the librarian/treasure said there was dirt on her carpet,but that wasn't that much of a biggie. We have had some big rains since the mulch has been laid. I expected to see it all gone. It's not. The playground feels like walking on a sponge. Because the playground was already there and packed good and we left enough jack rocks for draining the mulch is staying in place. I have my defense mechanism prepared for any gripers because I along with many others put so many back breaking hours into this project. The point of my long story? It played out, it worked, and everyone is living happily ever after (as far as I know). But it is edged up so much that the area beside the playground where the picnic tables are floods. So I feel we are about to embark on another debate. Perhaps pea gravel would help? LOL.

First off, I am definately for the playground to be handicap accessible. It's a wonderful thing but nonsequ is right, it's a very real concern. Now, I hate to admit this but in my previous life as a teenager, I was the kind of kid I hope my child doesn't turn out to be! When I first read the topic Ramps or no Ramps, I briefly (but first off) reverted to my teenage self and pictured a skate park! I haven't been on a board in over 15 years (aside from "Butt scooting" [img]smile.gif[/img] with my son's board). If I haven't ridden a board in that long and I thought about it, you can bet your sweet bippy that any kid within a 10 mile radius is going to think about it too! Reaching into my former 16 year old mind, I know that No skateboarding signs, made all of us want to skate them even more. These places were places of legend and those that did it without getting caught reveled in the glory (mostly the boys). Those that got caught told their tales of "I was able to get in x# of rails before they ran me off! Or, they told me to leave and I was back in a half hour" (I must add, I was never good at rails or grinds so I never damaged anything as a result Thankfully)
We have skate parks now but I still see the No skateboarding allowed signs with the "No" graffitied over and "Skateboarding is not a crime" stickers plastered over the top!
I know that there are skateboarders on my own street and although I've never caught them in the act, I have grind marks going down the ledge of my driveway! This is in front of my very own home!! (not my son though because he's not a good skater but a better computer geek [img]smile.gif[/img] )
It is a very real concern and as a older and (hopefully) much wiser adult, I realize that this activity in any place other than a skatepark can be brutal on the equipment. Next time you walk near an open place that also has a sidewalk, take a look at the edges, you'll see remnants of someones rail or the edges of a park bench too.
That being said, it is not a good enough reason to not put them in but a very good reason to examine the security of your school grounds and make sure that it's not publically accessible outside of daylight hours. (closed gates at night etc. Having the BOE there in the daylight will be a good deterent but I've seen skaters riding the handicapped ramp outside the police station at night!) Night time is when they'll come out.
If you really want to know how to keep them away, go to the source! Head down to your local skate park and ask them what kind of security measures would keep them from skating somewhere. (don't tell them where you're talking about though)
I guarantee you that this isn't a What if, situation. If you have ramps and great places to jump off and rails, you will get skateboarders and they will tell other skaters. Don't scrap the idea though because of it. You just have to figure out how you can make it handicapped accessible and to prevent costly damages to the equipment, keep the skaters away at the same time.

C.Brooks--am I sensing there was a mulch vs. rubber surfacing debate?

I've the feeling that there is "sidewalk talk" that the officers of this group are looking for some sort of glory in this for ourselves, or that I'm some sort of fanatic for championing the cause for the disabled. I admit that I'm the type to do things all the way, and that I can be just a LITTLE overbearing at times. [img]tongue.gif[/img] BUT I'm for the ramps because in the end, we can do it, and it's the right thing to do. (I also have this obsessive thought that NOT doing it guarantees one of our kids will have a NEED for the ramps, and they won't be there)!

I hate for anyone to think that I don't care about their opinion, or that their concerns aren't justified--believe me, once it was brought up I thought long and hard about it. But like Bertha said, I feel that not putting the ramps there just because MAYBE there'll be a problem isn't right. Let's face it--we have to take risks at some time or another, and maybe I'm being Pollyanna-ish, but I'm hoping that this will actually be something our town could take pride in and respect.

THANK YOU!! Please keep the comments coming!

[ 06-13-2004, 10:48 PM: Message edited by: kmamom ]

I'm all for the ramps! The playground is supposed to be "for the good of all kids" not just the ones in your school but for the entire town.

As for the skateboards, the playground will be on school property and the BOE already has a sign up somewhere around your school (just like at ours, which it's on the fence just in case you want to drive by and look)stating NO SKATEBOARDS, ROLLERBLADING, etc. on school property. Since your playground will be right outside the BOE building, they'll keep an eye on things and call the police when necessary.

If there's a real problem, the BOE will remove the ramps. No child should be excluded from playing on a playground because some parent feels there MAY be a problem, let's just wait and see.

Besides, there isn't a playground like it for at least and hours car ride away. And we all know that there are handicapped children in our town and our neighboring towns that will love your ramps!!!

Unfortunately, I think there is a legitimate concern. Not only will skateboarders descend after hours if there isn't a better option nearby, but trick bikers and inline skaters will come out too. At the university I went to, there were black skid marks all over, the paint on rails was scratched, the cement had cracks and the grass had bike paths cut into it. That was with campus security patrolling to stop it.

Having said that, I still think it's useful to try to accommodate wheel chairs. Perhaps contacting some one with the ADA would help sort out what to do or how to compromise. ( www.usdoj.gov/crt/ada/adahom1.htm )

Maybe the reason you have no handicapped students is because you don't have accessibility. I can see were this will be a hard sell when you don't have any students to show as the beneficiaries.

I disagree with the "good enough" idea. This means they only care about their kids and not the future of the school. Also, it is a benefit to the community as well. To varying degrees, almost all school playgrounds are used outside of school time as parks. Who knows, this might help boost the local property value.