Skateboard competition proposed

Immediately after joining the board, a new commissioner with decades of experience in the skateboard industry said he’d like to arrange a competition for the local skatepark for this summer.

The Coulee Area Park and Recreation District board had just appointed Ben Hughes and Kevin Portch to fill vacant positions on the board at the Feb. 5 meeting.

CAPRD, which extends through a wide swath of the four-county area, manages North Dam Park, which is owned by the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation.

Hughes proposed adding features to the skatepark and planning a skateboard competition for this summer.

Hughes, who was in the skateboarding/snowboarding industry for 20 years, said the existing space is big enough to attract a good competition. He said he would reach out to industry contacts to look for sponsorships.

The commissioners voted to give him authorization to pursue the enterprise.

Hughes and Portch were voted onto the board unanimously by commissioners present. Although Portch was not able to attend the meeting, Commissioner Robert Valen said he had agreed to serve on the district. Portch had attended the January meeting.

The commission regularly meets the first Monday of each month in the former middle school building in Grand Coulee at 6:30 p.m. Other commissioners on the five-member board are Valen, Debbie Bigelow and Carla Marconi.