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BOSTON: Charles River/Zakim Bridge Park UPDATES

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Gusto
Posted: Fri May 20, 2005 7:40 am Reply with quote
ORDER OF THE SKULL ORDER OF THE SKULL
Joined: 20 Jun 2002 Posts: 9275
Charles River Skatepark Project �rolling� forward
with new found support and continued momentum!

Charles River Skatepark Update
May 2005

Thanks to your support, the Charles River Conservancy is excited to provide you with this update for the highly anticipated Charles River Skatepark:

$680,000 Milestone Reached in Funds Raised for Skatepark . . . Recent larger donations have come from the Curious George Foundation, Cambridge Trust Company, the Cambridge Savings Charitable Foundation, Cynthia and Michael George and Mark and Elizabeth White among others. A list of all project donors can be found on our skatepark fundraising web page. All donors will be acknowledged by name at the skatepark site upon completion of the project and the CRC is currently exploring donor recognition options. Thank you for your generosity and support!

Kresge Challenge Grant Being Considered in June . . . A unique and important opportunity has been presented to the Charles River Skatepark Project. The Kresge Foundation, a national family foundation headquartered in Michigan, will be considering a $300,000 challenge grant to the skatepark project at their June board meeting, and we need your help to secure this significant funding. Your donations now will help us more than ever as our chance of receiving a Kresge Challenge Grant can be substantially increased if we raise a significant amount before their June board meeting. Remember, all donations made by skaters and bikers will be matched five fold by two anonymous donors.
Help us maximize our chances by donating before June 1st so that we can report significant progress to the Kresge Board of Trustees before their meeting. Donations can be made online by Visa or Mastercard, or checks can be made out to �Charles River Conservancy� with �Skatepark� indicated on the memo line and mailed to: CRC, One Education Street, Cambridge, MA 02141.

CRC Teams Up with Boston Duck Tours to Raise Awareness of the CR Skatepark . . . On Friday, May 13th, a Duck visited the future site of the CR Skatepark carrying Tom O'Neill III, Nancy Schon and approximately thirty project supporters and donors. The Duck, "Beacon Hillda", plunged into the Charles using their launch which is located just adjacent to the skatepark site.



Punk Rockers Band Together to Support the Charles River Skatepark . . . Gang Green and Slapshot, both known for their skateboarding influenced, punk rock style, are among the bands that have been performing in popular venues in Cambridge. The initiative, orchestrated by two local volunteers; Vietnam Le of Suffolk University and Patrick Clement of FNS Records, has been attended by over 400 people and has raised $8,565 to date with plans to continue the concerts through the summer. Check out our website for upcoming benefit concerts.

All revenue generated by these concerts, as well as donations made by skaters and BMX bikers will be multiplied five times by two anonymous donors! That means that a $25 donation will result in $150 for the skatepark fund. No donation is too small or large and no time is better than now!

The CRC would like to thank Vietnam, Patrick and all the local bands that have participated in this grassroots fundraising effort including Blank Stare, Blue Letter Days, Colin of Arabia, Concrete Facelift, Dead Ellington, For the Worse, Gang Green, Hammer Bros, Junction18, A Loss for Words, Rat Byte, Red Invasion, Ruiner, Say Goodbye, Shanghai Valentine, Slapshot, Spark, The Sterns, Stompin� Charlies, Tramps Like Us, and Up To Here.



CRC Working with Legislative Supporters to Secure State Funding for Skatepark . . . With the state Senate budget debates beginning, the CRC is working to secure funding for the skatepark project. Senator Jarrett Barrios has requested that $150,000 be allocated to the skatepark project in the Senate FY �06 Budget. You can help us lobby!! Call or write to your state senator asking that they support this funding for the skatepark. If you do not know who your state senator is, then click here to find the State Senator from your district.

*****

Skatepark in the News . . .



"A Godmother on the Waterfront", Boston Sunday Globe, City Weekly Section, March 20, 2005
"It's not a scene that most people would find inspiring. Most people, if they found themselves here, at night, in a gloomy section of East Cambridge riverfront dominated by towering highway ramps and piles of gravel, would head back out again as soon as possible. But to Renata von Tscharner, this no man's land is the perfect blank canvas..." Read more about the Charles River Skatepark plans in the Boston Sunday Globe article.



�Peter Lynch�s guide to philanthropy�, Boston Sunday Globe, Business and Money Section, February 27, 2005.
The article provided insight into the mind of one of Boston�s most generous philanthropists; Peter Lynch. �Lynch . . . says he views philanthropy as a form of investment. He prefers to give money to support ideas that he thinks can spread . . . In choosing charities, Lynch says he looks for innovative ideas and strong leadership.� The article continued, �Carolyn, who oversees the family foundation, said the couple is excited about a new skateboard park being planned along the Charles River�� The CRC was thrilled about this reaffirmation of support from a distinguished Boston philanthropist.

�They�ve made finding some board room their business�, Boston Globe, Sportsplus Section, Friday, April 8, 2005
�When Nancy Schon, the sculptor famous for her �Make Way for Ducklings� figures, heard that skateboarders were defacing one of her works a few years ago, she became enraged. The President of Friends of Copley Square called to tell her that her sculpture, �the Tortoise and the Hare,� was being used by boarders. �It made me mad as a hatter,� she said. So she went to Copley Square to admonish the kids bonking on her sculpture, but her reaction surprised even her. . .� Read more about the Charles River Skatepark plans in the Boston Globe article.

* * * * *

FINANCIAL UPDATE
Amount needed: $2.036 million
Gifts and pledges to date: $681,807
The Massachusetts Turnpike Authority has pledged an in-kind gift of site preparation.
Private Fundraising Effort
As of April 2005, 622 individuals have donated $250,653 to the Charles River Skatepark project.


Foundation Support
$281.5K in Foundation Grants Awarded to the CR Skatepark Project. Grants have come from an anonymous foundation, the Boston Foundation, the Boston Foundation for Architecture, the Cambridge Savings Charitable Foundation, the Tony Hawk Foundation, the Peter and Carolyn Lynch Foundation, the Herman and Frieda L. Miller Foundation and the Curious George Foundation.

Corporate Support
CambridgeSide Galleria, Boston Sand and Gravel, East Cambridge Savings Bank, Friends of P.O. Square, Timeless BMX, Anchor Capital Advisors, Inline Club of Boston, Cambridge Trust Company


Public Support
Public support is pledged from the City of Cambridge ($25,000) and the Boston Redevelopment Authority ($100,000).

In-Kind Support
The CRC would like to thank all the in-kind donors who have lent their support and talents to the project. A.J. Martini Inc., Eastern Boarder, Eye Candy Cinema, DVS Shoes, Nancy Sch�n, Phoenix Media Group, Royal Sonesta Hotel, Timeless BMX, Underground Snowboard, WFNX, Worship Skateboards, Yellowfin Direct Marketing.


If your business would like to become an in-kind donor to the Charles River Skatepark, please contact the CRC at 617.619.2850.

* * * * *

Charles River Conservancy
One Education Street, Cambridge, MA 02141
T: 617.619.2850 F: 617.619.2856
www.charlesriverconservancy.org
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Jose Cuervo
Posted: Tue Aug 29, 2006 7:41 am Reply with quote
Joined: 06 May 2005 Posts: 678 Location: Oakland
Update posted for Gusto:

IN THIS UPDATE:



-Introductions

-Our New Website

-Fundraising Update

-Design Update

-Upcoming Events



Hello All!



INTRODUCTIONS:



My name is Colin Riley, and I am the new project manager for the Charles River Skatepark. I am a native of Maine, and I have been skating for over 20 years. I have personally visited over 300 skateparks around the world, and I've seen the good, the bad, and the downright ugly! I am extremely excited to be heading up this project, and it is my goal that Boston gets the truly world-class skatepark that it deserves, that will be a symbol of local pride as well as a tourist destination for skaters, bikers, inline skaters, and spectators.



OUR NEW WEBSITE:



My first order of business with this project was to launch a new website specifically for the skatepark, which today is officially open for use: www.charlesriverskatepark.org . With this website, not only can users stay informed about the project, but also can register and login and post all sorts of content, from blogs to message board forum posts to images and video clips. It's like our own mySpace-type site for the Charles River Skatepark community...



Some of the features include:



BLOGS: As a user of the site, you are able to create and update your own blog on the website. You can use your blog to keep other users updated on your local skate or bike scene, your local events, or anything else you want to post. If your posts are revelant and appropriate, they might even get promoted to the front page of our site!



EVENT CALENDAR: You can post a listing for your upcoming skate, bike, music, or other skatepark or action sports related event in the Events Calendar.



FORUMS: The forum is destined to be the most popular section of our site. It has separate forum sections for discussing the Charles River Skatepark's design, fundraising plans and ideas, volunteer opportunities and events, and other topics relevant to the Charles River Skatepark. You can ask questions, provide ideas, or share any information you think is helpful to our cause.



IMAGE GALLERIES: You can post pictures on the Charles River Skatepark website, relating to events, your local scene, or other relevant topics. Pictures are placed into Image Galleries to keep them organized.



VIDEO GALLERIES: You can also post video clips on the Charles River Skatepark website of skateboarding, BMX, snowboarding, surfing, whatever! You can upload short and small clips of 2MB or less, or you can link to video hosted on another server or clips uploaded to Google Video or YouTube.

This website will allow for easier communication from my desk to all of you, and equally as well enable easy communication between users, and will be the best source for information regarding the Charles River Skatepark project. The ultimate goal with the website is to foster a "virtual community" online before the skatepark is built, one that will morph into an actual physical community when the skatepark becomes a reality.

The best place to start at the new website is at the how to use page at http://www.charlesriverskatepark.org/howtousethesite . This page will tell you how to register, login, and start using the website...

FUNDRAISING UPDATE:

Recently we were allocated $150,000 from the State of Massachusetts to be used for the Charles River Skatepark! We have also recently received $10,000 from the Paul & Phyllis Fireman Charitable Foundation, and $25,000 from the Harold Whitworth Pierce Charitable Trust. Our current fundraising total to date is $1.15 million, but we still need more: Visit http://www.charlesriverskatepark.org/fundraising for more information on how you can donate....

DESIGN UPDATE:

It's been about three years since the design and development meetings were first held, and more than two years since our current design was produced. There has been some serious progression in skatepark design in the last two years, and we are planning the biggest skatepark on the east coast and perhaps one of the most expensive ever to be built! As I mentioned in my introduction, I bring to this job a great deal of experience with skateparks, and I strongly believe if our skatepark is to truly be world-class and a "destination skatepark," then it should as well-planned and modern as possible. I not only believe we can improve upon our current design to better reflect the recent progression in the skatepark design industry (street plaza terrain, oververt transitions, backyard-style pools, re-creation of local street spots, etc), but that we must also address some important safety issues with our current design.

That said, I also realize that many of you put your input into the current design two or three years ago, and that input should certainly be respected. Therefore, the design forum on our new website should be the place to openly discuss these design issues. Check out the new site, and post up and share your opinions in the design forum on the design of the Charles River Skatepark.

UPCOMING EVENTS:

Underground Block Party

Boston's Underground Snowboards is throwing a very special block party top benefit the Charles River Skatepark on Saturday, September 16th from 12-5 PM. It will be held on Amory St., off of Commonwealth Ave, right in front of Underground's entrance. A demo is planned to kick things off at noon on the street course, and there will be an open session afterwards for anyone who wants to skate. A suggested donation will be charged to skate the open session, and that will go to benefit the skatepark. There will also be music, a raffle, an urban art demonstration and more!

More info: http://www.charlesriverskatepark.org/event2006091601

East Boston Skatepark Cleanup Day

Join the Charles River Skatepark Project on Saturday, September 23rd, 2006 at 10 AM for the East Boston Skatepark Cleanup Day at the Harborside Skatepark at Umana Barnes School in East Boston. We'll be pitching in and cleaning up the area to show all of Boston that we care about our skateparks! Afterwards, there will be a session - maybe a game of skate, or more!



You can sign up below for this event, or just show up! Bring your brooms, dustpans, shovels, and trashbags, and raingear as the cleanup will happen RAIN OR SHINE! Don't forget your skate or bike for the session afterwards (hope for no rain!)



More info: http://www.charlesriverskatepark.org/event2006092301



THANKS!



Thanks for supporting the Charles River Skatepark!!! Check out our new site, and start getting involved by posting some content!



Colin M. Riley

Charles River Skatepark Project Manager



Charles River Conservancy

1 Education Street

Cambridge, MA 02141

Office: (617) 619-2854

Cell: (845) 242-3176
View user's profile Send private message Visit poster's website AIM Address
Jose Cuervo
Posted: Tue Aug 29, 2006 7:41 am Reply with quote
Joined: 06 May 2005 Posts: 678 Location: Oakland
Update posted for Gusto:

IN THIS UPDATE:



-Introductions

-Our New Website

-Fundraising Update

-Design Update

-Upcoming Events



Hello All!



INTRODUCTIONS:



My name is Colin Riley, and I am the new project manager for the Charles River Skatepark. I am a native of Maine, and I have been skating for over 20 years. I have personally visited over 300 skateparks around the world, and I've seen the good, the bad, and the downright ugly! I am extremely excited to be heading up this project, and it is my goal that Boston gets the truly world-class skatepark that it deserves, that will be a symbol of local pride as well as a tourist destination for skaters, bikers, inline skaters, and spectators.



OUR NEW WEBSITE:



My first order of business with this project was to launch a new website specifically for the skatepark, which today is officially open for use: www.charlesriverskatepark.org . With this website, not only can users stay informed about the project, but also can register and login and post all sorts of content, from blogs to message board forum posts to images and video clips. It's like our own mySpace-type site for the Charles River Skatepark community...



Some of the features include:



BLOGS: As a user of the site, you are able to create and update your own blog on the website. You can use your blog to keep other users updated on your local skate or bike scene, your local events, or anything else you want to post. If your posts are revelant and appropriate, they might even get promoted to the front page of our site!



EVENT CALENDAR: You can post a listing for your upcoming skate, bike, music, or other skatepark or action sports related event in the Events Calendar.



FORUMS: The forum is destined to be the most popular section of our site. It has separate forum sections for discussing the Charles River Skatepark's design, fundraising plans and ideas, volunteer opportunities and events, and other topics relevant to the Charles River Skatepark. You can ask questions, provide ideas, or share any information you think is helpful to our cause.



IMAGE GALLERIES: You can post pictures on the Charles River Skatepark website, relating to events, your local scene, or other relevant topics. Pictures are placed into Image Galleries to keep them organized.



VIDEO GALLERIES: You can also post video clips on the Charles River Skatepark website of skateboarding, BMX, snowboarding, surfing, whatever! You can upload short and small clips of 2MB or less, or you can link to video hosted on another server or clips uploaded to Google Video or YouTube.

This website will allow for easier communication from my desk to all of you, and equally as well enable easy communication between users, and will be the best source for information regarding the Charles River Skatepark project. The ultimate goal with the website is to foster a "virtual community" online before the skatepark is built, one that will morph into an actual physical community when the skatepark becomes a reality.

The best place to start at the new website is at the how to use page at http://www.charlesriverskatepark.org/howtousethesite . This page will tell you how to register, login, and start using the website...

FUNDRAISING UPDATE:

Recently we were allocated $150,000 from the State of Massachusetts to be used for the Charles River Skatepark! We have also recently received $10,000 from the Paul & Phyllis Fireman Charitable Foundation, and $25,000 from the Harold Whitworth Pierce Charitable Trust. Our current fundraising total to date is $1.15 million, but we still need more: Visit http://www.charlesriverskatepark.org/fundraising for more information on how you can donate....

DESIGN UPDATE:

It's been about three years since the design and development meetings were first held, and more than two years since our current design was produced. There has been some serious progression in skatepark design in the last two years, and we are planning the biggest skatepark on the east coast and perhaps one of the most expensive ever to be built! As I mentioned in my introduction, I bring to this job a great deal of experience with skateparks, and I strongly believe if our skatepark is to truly be world-class and a "destination skatepark," then it should as well-planned and modern as possible. I not only believe we can improve upon our current design to better reflect the recent progression in the skatepark design industry (street plaza terrain, oververt transitions, backyard-style pools, re-creation of local street spots, etc), but that we must also address some important safety issues with our current design.

That said, I also realize that many of you put your input into the current design two or three years ago, and that input should certainly be respected. Therefore, the design forum on our new website should be the place to openly discuss these design issues. Check out the new site, and post up and share your opinions in the design forum on the design of the Charles River Skatepark.

UPCOMING EVENTS:

Underground Block Party

Boston's Underground Snowboards is throwing a very special block party top benefit the Charles River Skatepark on Saturday, September 16th from 12-5 PM. It will be held on Amory St., off of Commonwealth Ave, right in front of Underground's entrance. A demo is planned to kick things off at noon on the street course, and there will be an open session afterwards for anyone who wants to skate. A suggested donation will be charged to skate the open session, and that will go to benefit the skatepark. There will also be music, a raffle, an urban art demonstration and more!

More info: http://www.charlesriverskatepark.org/event2006091601

East Boston Skatepark Cleanup Day

Join the Charles River Skatepark Project on Saturday, September 23rd, 2006 at 10 AM for the East Boston Skatepark Cleanup Day at the Harborside Skatepark at Umana Barnes School in East Boston. We'll be pitching in and cleaning up the area to show all of Boston that we care about our skateparks! Afterwards, there will be a session - maybe a game of skate, or more!



You can sign up below for this event, or just show up! Bring your brooms, dustpans, shovels, and trashbags, and raingear as the cleanup will happen RAIN OR SHINE! Don't forget your skate or bike for the session afterwards (hope for no rain!)



More info: http://www.charlesriverskatepark.org/event2006092301



THANKS!



Thanks for supporting the Charles River Skatepark!!! Check out our new site, and start getting involved by posting some content!



Colin M. Riley

Charles River Skatepark Project Manager



Charles River Conservancy

1 Education Street

Cambridge, MA 02141

Office: (617) 619-2854

Cell: (845) 242-3176
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maseru-man
Posted: Fri May 25, 2007 5:28 am Reply with quote
Joined: 20 Feb 2005 Posts: 493 Location: Massachusetts - USA
Bummer...I just saw this...5 days too late




m-m
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thewikwakdj
Posted: Sat Aug 22, 2009 9:33 am Reply with quote
Joined: 24 Feb 2009 Posts: 284 Location: framingham,MA
Curious on how this project is coming along?

_________________
~JAY~
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Xgecko
Posted: Sat Aug 22, 2009 9:49 am Reply with quote
Joined: 06 Sep 2008 Posts: 456 Location: Westerly RI
thewikwakdj wrote:
Curious on how this project is coming along?




_________________
It is almost like racism to seperate street skating and longboards.
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maseru-man
Posted: Sat Aug 22, 2009 12:44 pm Reply with quote
Joined: 20 Feb 2005 Posts: 493 Location: Massachusetts - USA
One of the GONErs spoke to a person at the Charles River Conservancy back in April or May - and she assured us that it would be in built by spring 2010.

Sadly they lost a great opportunity for publicity and fund raising when the Dew Tour was in Boston...but the "person at the Charles River Conservancy " was on vacation that week
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carveNgrind
Posted: Tue Dec 15, 2015 2:54 pm Reply with quote
Joined: 10 Nov 2002 Posts: 1498 Location: the 805
Does anyone remember the original names of the skater and/or group of skateboarders who initially brought the need for a permanent public skatepark to Boston/Cambridge. Was reading their website and not a word of the original grassroots effort that took place for this. I am not from Boston but I think this is a tragic oversight.
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