THE CITY OF WASHINGTON
“Cleanest City in Iowa”
Ed Brown, Mayor
David Plyman, City AdministratorP.O. Box 516
Jeff Rosien, Clerk215 E. Washington St.
Craig Arbuckle, AttorneyWashington, IA 52353
Dan Whitlow, City Engineer319-653-6584
Fax Only 319-653-5273
February 19, 2003
The Washington Skate Park was born when a group of local boys approached the City Park Board and asked if the city would consider building a skate park for the youth of the community. The board was skeptical but listened. Because there was no money in the budget for such things, the board told the boys they would have to raise the funds themselves. After several months the boys returned with a plan to raise money. The $60-70,000 necessary to buy ramps from a company selling skate parks would be out of reach but, “maybe we could build the ramps ourselves” they said.
After plenty of research, I told the park board that members from our community could build the park ourselves. After an informational town meeting with youth and interested parents, we set a goal to raise $25,000. We also learned at this meeting that most of the interested youth were not involved in school activities and needed an alternative sport. A park would also provide a legitimate place to bike and skate, instead of park benches, sidewalks, and private property.
We visited area skate parks and saw first hand different building choices for ramps. After weighing initial cost and long term maintenance costs we decided all steel ramps would suit us best. We contacted local industries that build things from steel and got their commitment to help. Most have donated their services. By November 2002, we built five components: two-quarter pipes (3.5’ and 6’), one pyramid, one mini ramp with spine, and one grind box. We opened in November 2002. Our skate park occupies an unused tennis court, which measures 120 feet square. It has a chain link fence and is unsupervised.
In 2003, we want to expand the skate park with an eight-foot quarter pipe, a four-foot tall fun box, and two grind rails. We are asking “The Tony Hawk Foundation” for $5,000. To date we have spent $18,319. We feel very good about what we have so far and plan to build similar style ramps. If you have questions you can reach me by e-mail at or by mail at the address listed above.
Thank You,
Tim Widmer
Park Superintendent
TW/sn