Subway to skatepark

As president of the Malta Skateboard Association, I would like to express my sincere gratitude to the Prime Minister, the Parliamentary Secretary for Finance and most of all the Minister of the Environment George Pullicino for meeting the aspirations of us skaters to have a skatepark of high standard where we are able to practice and enjoy our sport.

The idea of us having a skatepark is not a new one. Ever since skateboarding emerged more than 30 years ago, there have been skateboarders in Malta who dreamt of having a place for themselves. With nowhere to go, the streets and sidewalks were the only place to skate, and skateboarders came to be seen in a negative way rather than people practicing a sport and doing something positive. Skateboarding suffered a steady decline over the years. When the Msida subway was built around 1996, it was immediately realised to be a great place to skate, centrally located with enough space for skaters to use it without getting in the way of pedestrians or vice-versa. It soon became the meeting place for skateboarders, and skateboarding started to grow again.

The Msida subway also encouraged us to form our own association (founded by skateboarder Chris Jensen in 2003), with the intention of approaching the government in order to secure the place as a skateboarding area. With the help of the Maryanne Cuomo of the Msida local council, the Commisioner of Children Sonja Camilleri and her secretary Daniela Debono, John Fenech Adami, architect Ivan Coleiro and the strong support of the Minister of the Environment, our need for a skatepark was recognised, and the government not only consented to skateboarders using the place, but promised to provide the funds to develop the area into a skatepark according to our specifications. In a relatively short period of time, we were contacted by Oliver Luatier from the Ministry of the Environment, and before we knew it, the project got moving.

The first concrete skatepark of its kind in Malta was able to become a reality through the dedication, technical expertise and not a little patience of all involved in its construction and I would like to mention in particular the architect responsible for the project, Ivan Coleiro, the chief contractor Polidano, and finally the construction staff of Polidano Brothers who carried out the work in a skilful manner. All these persons were constantly on site to ensure that the project was completed in a short period of time and to high specification required for skateboarding.

The skatepark at the Msida subway will give skateboarding an opportunity to grow and allow skaters to develop their skills to much higher levels. Besides providing a place where skateboarding events such as competitions and demos may be organised, it will also allow skateboarders to prepare for and take part in international events.