A scent of California at Montesquieu. In La Brède, in Gironde, the old skateboard modules in poor condition and no longer really adapted to modern skateboarding will give way in a few months to a real concrete skatepark. On a 650 m² play area, the new park will include a street area and…
A scent of California at Montesquieu. In La Brède, in Gironde, the old skateboard modules in poor condition and no longer really adapted to modern skateboarding will give way in a few months to a real concrete skatepark. On a 650 m² play area, the new park will include a street area and a “ditch”. Up to two meters in height, this basin will represent the concrete irrigation canals (“ditch”) found on the west coast of the United States, with their inclined planes very popular with skateboarders since the 1970s when ‘they are dry.
Flat bar, curbs, curves, inclined planes, corners, hips… skaters will appreciate the different modules where they can express all their creativity. The skatepark will also be open to rollerbladers, BMXers and scooter riders. The equipment will be built on the site of the former skatepark, right next to the city stadium and the pétanque courts. A site in the heart of the city, opening onto the green meadows of the Parc de l’Espérance. A choice made by the municipality which wants to make the site a place for multigenerational meetings.
The skatepark will consist of a ditch and a street area.
Hall 04
“At the beginning, we did not set out on a project of this magnitude,” remembers Bastien Pouzou. “But when Covid came out, young people challenged the mayor on the subject. We launched a questionnaire and we got a lot of feedback,” says the elected official in charge of the project. From meeting to meeting with the ever-increasing skater community participating, the city council decided to change gear.
Opening early 2025
“We saw the dynamic of young people and we understood the enormous potential there was to carry out a more ambitious project. We invest in a community that is as sporty as it is creative. Music, fashion, street literature, behind skateboarding, there is a real freedom-loving culture,” continues Bastien Pouzou. As a result, the municipality put a check for 325,000 euros on the table. Subsidies are expected at all levels.
The design was entrusted to the Landes company Hall 04 which has already designed the concrete parks of Bazas, Langon and Cadillac. “Concrete offers a freedom of design that wood does not allow. Its long-term operating cost is very low,” underlines project manager Jean-Baptiste Picot, who designed the project with future users.
Work will begin at the start of the school year in September. They should last two to three months depending on climatic hazards. The municipality then wants to create green spaces around it. Delivery is planned during the first quarter of 2025, at the latest.
