City of Powell River council held its committee-of-the-whole meeting at Brooks Secondary School last week to give students an opportunity to see local government in action.
About 100 students attended the meeting, which was designed to attract interest in forming a youth council. “The primary objective of forming a Powell River youth council is to provide our youth with a voice to represent their views in the broader community,” Mayor Dave Formosa told the students. “Your input is of tremendous value to us and will help offer insight into how youth use and perceive the city, our facilities, events and activities that it provides.”
Formosa encouraged students to become involved in the youth council, which would advocate for all young people in the community. “I’m hoping to get you energized and enthusiastic about civic matters and the vital role you can play in our community,” he said. “You can make the difference by standing up for what you believe in and helping others to do the same.”
Jim Barnun, the owner of Spectrum Skateparks Inc. which builds skateboard parks around the world, gave a presentation about the skateboard park at Powell River Recreation Complex and ways it could be improved. Since he formed his company in 1999, he has designed 145 projects in Canada, the United States, France, England, China and Israel.
City council has been looking at the issue of the skateboard park since the summer, when Tyson Wilson, a Brooks student, wrote a letter explaining the park’s problems and asking council to address the issues. City staff has approached Powell River Community Forest Ltd. to request funding for a skateboard and bike park design.
Barnun, who also gave a presentation at the September 12 committee-of-the-whole meeting, pointed out that Powell River constructed one of the first modern skateboard parks in BC. There wasn’t anyone who designed them at the time, he added, but the community did its best. “That said, it’s old and it has issues,” he said.
Some of the issues include the joint between the concrete and asphalt, inconsistent surfaces on the transitions and the drain at the bottom, which is a major hazard, according to Barnun. Other issues include problems with the angles of the bowl transitions (the curved area of the bowl wall), the condition of the coping (the metal tubing that runs around the lip of the bowl) and the lack of banks outside the bowl for riders to safely land on.
Barnun talked about the benefits of skateboard parks, which he said are becoming more family-oriented. He explained that if council approves building a new park or renovating the existing park, youth should be involved in the design.
Councillor Jim Palm, who is a counsellor at Brooks, told the students that youth council application forms are available and he encouraged participation in the process.
Depending on the number of students who apply to be on the youth council, an election could be held.
