Summary: The Denver Park Trust is supporting a community-led initiative to add a skatepark to the Kennedy Sports Complex in Southeast Denver’s Hampden neighborhood. The future amenity will close a city-wide skatepark gap and provide youth and adults a place to recreate and gather.
Project Background: In 2021 three teenagers, with support of then Councilwoman Kendra Black, began to advocate for the addition of a skatepark in their neighborhood. Black’s council office, along with the Denver Park Trust and the Cornerstone Skate Foundation, hosted a 2022 pop-up skate event at Kennedy Sports Complex that engaged more than 300 attendees with skate lessons, food, and music.
In 2023, Cornerstone Skate Foundation, with a Community Grant supporting the Building of a Skateboarding Community, hosted three learn to skate clinics for youth ages 5-11 from Holm, Samuels, and Shoemaker elementary schools, institutions where a high percentage of students qualify for free and reduced lunch. A total of 47 individuals participated.
Next Steps: Denver Parks and Recreation’s Outdoor Adventure and Alternative Sports Master Plan identifies southeast Denver as a high-priority location for a new skatepark, with plans underway to add one at the Kennedy Sports Complex. Funding may come from multiple sources, including contributions secured by the Denver Park Trust, a portion of the proposed 2025 Vibrant Denver Bond, and allocations from DPR’s Capital Improvement Project budget. Community visioning for the project is expected to begin in 2026.