The collection of ramps, rails and other skating equipment on the Ohio University South Green Basketball Courts is being removed by the university, Dec. 12.
Students and skaters of the community refer to the spot as “the courts” or “the OU skate park;" however, the university rejects these terms and refers to it as the “South Green Basketball Courts.” The university contacted members of the OU Skate Club to inform the club to remove all of its property from the area due to policy 01.044.
The removal of skate equipment is leaving Bobcats, including Skate Club members with limited spaces to skate, raising concerns not only for students but also about university property and spaces. Section B-nine of the policy states students cannot store equipment or install any fixtures in outdoor university spaces. The policy does allow one-time exceptions in accordance with policy 01.003, which is something the Skate Club is hoping to receive.
Blake Fingerhut, a junior studying business analytics and president of the Skate Club, started skating 10 years ago and joined the club his freshman year. He said he is in contact with several school representatives to reach a resolution.
“It provides a safe third space for everyone who enjoys skating or just wants to hang out,” Fingerhut said.
Despite the Skate Club’s online petition with more than 1,000 signatures, the university has remained firm in its decision.
“To my knowledge, it's been around at least four years before COVID, so around 10 years,” Fingerhut said. “The school has taken (ramps) down before in 2020.”
Fingerhut said the Skate Club provides a space for people to improve their skateboarding skills and connect with others interested in the hobby.
In a statement about “the courts,” Imants Jaunarajs, assistant vice president for engagement and career services, said the university reached out to the skate club to inform it that no student organization can have primary use of a university space or store equipment on university grounds.
“Since early October, Student Affairs has reached out to the club on multiple occasions to provide it with alternative space options and to offer its help to relocate all of the club’s equipment, including its ramps, pipes and boxes, before the end of the semester (and no later than December 12),” Jaunarajas wrote in an email. “They have also continued to encourage the club to explore further use of our community’s official skate park, located nearby at the Athens Community Center.”
Jonas Hoelzle, a senior studying nursing, is the vice president and a founder of the club, and said the community park is too far for students with no transportation and is not beginner-friendly. The Athens Community Center Skate Park is a 46-minute walk from Baker University Center.
“It's not a place where you learn how to skateboard,” Hoelzle said. “It's a place you go once you already know how. And that's kind of like the role the courts were serving for the longest time. (There are) smaller obstacles you can learn from if you're beginning. It’s way more beginner-friendly.”
Hoelzle said the university’s decision to enforce the policy after years of neglecting to notify the club of any violations is interesting, and also claimed the club was not asked to move when the university did maintenance underneath the courts last year.
“My theory is that since they're redoing all of South Green, I think they want it to be, you know, picturesque,” Hoelzle said. “I think maybe some of them see it as an eyesore, which I disagree with.”
With students having fewer places to skate, Hoelzle said the university will see people skating “where they’re not supposed to,” such as on structures and other university property. Currently, the Skate Club is searching for a new place to store its equipment and is planning to set up in a backyard before regrouping and finding a permanent place.
Hoelzle described the courts as a center of inclusion, especially for new students and skaters. He said multiple people put time and money into purchasing equipment and practicing, and the area itself is well-maintained.
“I think it was a really cool, free community space that the university didn’t have to do anything to maintain at all, and it was all student-run,” Hoelzle said. “I think it's gonna be a big loss for the university, even if they don't see it that way.”
