(September 19, 2012) — According to the Glendale News-Press , the Verdugo Skate Park was very close to being shut down this past summer. Knowing that the park gets about 12,000 visitors each year, City Council members were able to keep the park open on weekends; however, Glendale’s budget has affected local skaters.

Starting Oct. 1, local skaters will have to start paying a fee to use the park, $3 for youth and $4 for adults. “I go there about once a week and that’s a lot of money in a month for skating,” said senior Jaytanut Yongpairojwong. The youth fee for non-residents will no longer be free, as well. The monthly membership fee for youth will go up from $25 to $50. “People in Glendale always get mad at us [skateboarders]. Like some old people will tell us to go somewhere else and then we’ll go somewhere else, then more people will tell us to leave,” said Yongpairojwong,

“People who don’t have money to spend on the park won’t have anywhere to go to skate.” Junior Christopher Pereira also dislikes future changes the park will be making. “The city built the park for us [skateboarders], so we should be able to skate without having to pay,” said Pereira. Pereira likes Verdugo Skate park because it’s a good place to skate without any police officers approaching him.

He also likes the bowls at the park, which aren’t offered on the street. Skateboarders who don’t live near skate parks usually ride in the street. According to the Tony Hawk Foundation, more than 90% of deaths involving the use of a skateboard in the U.S happen outside of skate parks. This meaning that skate parks provide a safe place for local skaters. Parks also allow skaters to not be bothered by or not bother members of a community. With this new rule, Pereira said that he will probably not be going to the skate park as often as he does now.

He often prefers to street skate because of the “random pieces of scrap” that he can use to do tricks off of. One of Pereira favorite parks is the North Hollywood Skate park, because it’s simulates street skating. The skate park will also be opening later and closing earlier, by an hour.

One reason why senior Joshua Balmadrid likes Verdugo is because it’s a good place for night skating. However, since the park is lighted at night, Balmadrid isn’t bothered too much about the time change. Balmadrid said that he knows that the fee is for a good reason, which is to keep the park open. “I’m not that bummed about it, they have to do what they have to do,” Balmadrid said.