Consensus on Skateboarding
By Ted Reckas on October 08, 2010 2:18 PM | Comments (184)
Local skater Jeff White nearing the apex of the S Turn on Park Avenue. Photo: Ted Reckas.
Skateboarder’s rights to use public streets were largely upheld in a draft ordinance approved by a city committee last week that would impose new requirements on skaters to use safety gear and adhere to the same rules as motorists and cyclists.
The proposed ordinance needs City Council approval to take affect and has yet to be scheduled for consideration.
The most controversial provision under consideration, an outright skateboarding ban on certain sections of Park Avenue, Nyes Place, Summit Drive, and Temple Hills Drive, was overturned after public comment. Committee member Michael Schneider suggested dropping the provision because bans on certain streets would simply push skaters to use other streets.
Evren Ozan waits in the LBAG clubhouse to speak to the gathering of local skaters. Photo: Ted Reckas.
With that modification, the committee unanimously approved the ordinance, written by a sub-committee made up of Neal Katz, Vic Opincar, Darrylin Girvin, and Ernest Hackmon.
Resident Vicki High, in a post on Facebook, said, “the kids completely won the PTC over. In a word, awesome.”
Skateboarders like Ethan Vinograd insisted they take the law seriously.
“When we skate down any hill and the cop’s chasing us we don’t try to run just because we’re scared that we’re going to get in trouble….We kind of do,” he said, to laughter from the audience, “But when we skate we don’t try to break the law. We don’t say, ‘Oh we’re going to try to skate down this hill to get a cop to chase us. That’s gonna be funny.’ We don’t think that’s funny.”
The proposed ordinance, which stated, “The vast majority of skateboarders are respectful,” requires helmets to be worn by any skater under 18 years, lights on the front and back of skateboarders’ helmets after dark, obedience to bicycle rules, including stop signs and speed limits, and skateboarding in a way that does not threaten injury to persons or property. Penalties would be assessed at $25 for a first infraction $50 for a second offense, and $100 for all subsequent violations. The ordinance would also allow skateboard groups to receive special permits to use streets for competitions.
Junior World Champion of downhill skateboarding Evren Ozan addresses local skaters on skateboarding safety and etiquette. Photo: Ted Reckas.
Margaret Butt, an 18-year Laguna resident, said, “I am against skateboarders, sad to say, but I am.”
She asserted that regulating skateboarding won’t work because skaters won’t follow the rules. She also recommended a skate park be built so skaters had somewhere to go off the streets. In an interview after the meeting Butt relented on her position, saying she would condone skateboarding on public streets if skaters followed rules proposed by the draft ordinance.
Among the most common grievances from skateboarders, including Hunter Schwirtz and Wyatt Gibbs, was being harassed, yelled at, sometimes with profanities, and told skateboarding is illegal by residents and police. “It’d be a good idea to let people know it isn’t illegal,” said Schwirtz.
Wyatt Gibb’s father, Chad Gibbs, said skateboarding should not be singled out from other wheeled vehicles using the road.
“Nothing is more dangerous than when I drive on Coast Highway in the morning and those packs of bicyclists are five wide and I’m trying to merge into the fast lane to get around them, so I don’t know why it’s just applying to these guys,” he said, referring to skateboarders.
Gibbs is hosting an “etiquette and rules mentorship,” for skateboarders today in his garage, the club house for Laguna Beach Alpha Groms, a local skateboarding group.
High profile competitive downhill skaters like Mark Golter, world champ in 2003, and Evren Ozan, current junior world champ, and both Laguna residents, also spoke.
Jeff Stepien mentioned that, when skateboarding for transportation as a kid, he would use the hilly streets where the ban was considered in order to avoid the greater danger of Coast Highway.
Roger Johnson, left, and Avery Crowl hang out in the LBAG clubhouse during the gathering of local skaters. Photo: Ted Reckas.
Peter Davidson said of the proposed regulations. “I’m against having our officers spending our money chasing skateboarders,” to which Margaret Butt replied, “I’m all for it.”
Davidson: “Well I’m against it and I’m a homeowner and I have my three minutes.”
This was the sole point of tension in an otherwise courteous meeting.
About 60 people attended the meeting, all but one in favor of skateboarding. An earlier hearing in July drew 100 people and lengthy arguments on both sides. Alan Bernstein and other Bluebird Canyon residents who in May initially pushed for a ban on skating hilly streets and imposing a 10 mile per hour speed limit on skaters were absent at last night’s meeting. He was not able to be reached for this article.
“The real story is that the kids have represented themselves so maturely and worked so well with the city on this. They really came together on this and showed what can be done,” said David Vanderveen, parent of a skater.
After approval by the city attorney, and public works staff, it will go before the city council for final approval.
Local filmmaker Michael Spencer Taylor’s interview with a local skateboarder can be viewed here.
