KAPA’A — To pad or not to pad, that is the question. Whether it is nobler to require skateboarders to wear gear to protect heads, elbows and knees—or just helmets, the county continues to delay opening of the Kapa’a New
KAPA’A — To pad or not to pad, that is the question.
Whether it is nobler
to require skateboarders to wear gear to protect heads, elbows and knees—or
just helmets, the county continues to delay opening of the Kapa’a New Park
skateboard rink until it can get the wording on advisory signs for the park
exactly right.
The signs will eventually outline the kinds of protective
gear required by all users of the skateboard facility, and information
regarding limited liability on the county’s part should anyone using the
unsupervised rink be injured in the process.
Among those the most
frustrated about not being able to open the rink yet is Bernard Carvalho,
director of recreation in the county Department of Public Works Division of
Parks & Recreation.
“The kids need this. But just give us a little bit
more time so we can do it right,” he said of the final wording on signs to be
posted.
He hopes the rink can be officially opened to the public either
Friday or Saturday, Jan. 14 or 15, because it won’t take the county long to get
the signs done in-house after the wording is finalized.
In the meantime,
the fenced-in rink is closed, entry is against the law, and Kaua’i Police
Department officers have cited at least one adult skateboarder for criminal
trespassing, Carvalho told The Garden Island.
People have stolen a “no
trespassing” sign posted on the fence, and have broken the lock designed to
keep people out until the official signs are posted and the rink is finally
opened to the public, he continued.
The final wording on the signs has been
a work in progress, with Carvalho thinking information about required
protective gear had been agreed upon during a community meeting here last
month.
But, as the county attorney’s office gets involved in the actual
wording, and the community continues to provide input, the final decision on
how much protective gear will be required remains up in the
air.
Skateboarders argue that the nearby tennis, basketball and baseball
players don’t require helmets, knee pads and elbow pads, and they’re just as
apt to take spills as skateboarders, Carvalho cited as an example of the
ongoing discussions about wording on the signs.
Another point of contention
is what violators will face if they don’t follow the posted rules. Will they be
told to leave the facility, cited for violation of county law, or dealt with in
another way?
Carvalho is working with a local retailer to see if some kind
of rental or borrowing system regarding protective equipment can be worked out
to further facilitate rink users.
Community members have volunteered to
clean up the area around the rink and organize formal opening ceremonies,
Carvalho said.
