Why do we need a streetlight for the skate park?

For many skaters in London, the Medway-Kiwanis Skatepark is in desperate need of a streetlight.

We need government support to break skateboarding stereotypes and increase the popularity of skateboarding. Thus, the first step towards achieving these goals is providing skaters with good infrastructure.

Skateboarding officially made its debut as a sport at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics. However, unlike national sports like soccer or hockey, skateboarding has struggled to develop in a controversial environment.

The Medway skatepark has no lighting, supposedly because of concerns that homeless people will live down there and do drugs at night. This leads to the sport being forced to be suspended when the sun goes down because it’s very dangerous to skate in darkness. But alternative places like university campus puts up signs banning skateboarding, saying that it vandalizes public facilities.

However, public issues like homelessness should not be considered from the perspective of whether skateparks are suitable for them to inhabit, but how the government should make better housing measures for the homeless. People skateboard in public places because they are not provided with adequate and good venues, as is the case with Medway's skatepark. 

Skaters need skateparks just like hockey players need ice rinks. Fairness in sports is not just on the field. When a sport has good field support, more people will participate in it. Changing mindsets doesn’t happen overnight but installing a streetlight can solve a current dilemma for London skaters.