Council signs off on plans to expand or build new Pleasanton skate park

The Pleasanton City Council officially signed off Tuesday on either building a new skate park or expanding the current facility at Ken Mercer Sports Park.

The city will pay $115,154 to RRM Design Group for conceptual design and public outreach for the park on Hopyard Road.

Pleasanton recognized it needed a new facility seven years ago in its 2014 Parks and Recreation Master Plan, identifying it “as one of the City of Pleasanton’s more significant deficiencies,” according to a staff report.

The plan calls for an acre more of skating space as the city’s population grows. The city determined the new space should be either adjacent to the current facility, or part of a renovation and expansion.

The council allocated $400,000 in its 2019-2021 Capital Improvement Program for the expansion, a process expected to take three years. The city looked at similar facilities in Fremont, Milpitas and Newark for design ideas, and considered recommendations from local skatepark advocates. There has also been support at public meetings to name the new facility after late parks and recreation commissioner David Lambert.

The council gave the go-ahead for the design process on its consent calendar without discussion.