ALEXANDRIA, VA – In an era where we seem to have fewer and fewer places to meet people, it is paramount that those remaining are preserved, revered, and shared. Schuyler Hamilton Jones skatepark (3540 Wheeler Ave.) was once a hub for skaters of all levels, backgrounds, and ages to come together. There, they learned the values of community, accountability, self-improvement, and perseverance
Eli Fathelbab, a skater and student at Bishop Ireton School, initially brought attention to the state of the skatepark in 2019, by working with a private vendor to try and obtain additional lighting and other refurbishments on the park grounds.
He established a donation box, akin to those miniature lending library boxes in some communities, which sparked his family’s local advocacy work for the skatepark.
Shortly thereafter, the nature of their advocacy work shifted after a car plowed through the skatepark off Quaker Lane, damaging the grounds and equipment. This prompted a cohesive and strong collaboration with the City of Alexandria, combining Eli’s family’s tireless advocacy work with the city government’s ability to mobilize resources.
The family’s partnership with the city began after it conducted initial repairs of the park equipment and hosted a pop-up event, in which the community could attend free events onsite while providing feedback for the direction of work to be done onsite,
in order to restore the skatepark. the city’s good-faith efforts were spearheaded by Jose Ayala, Principal Urban Planner ; Bethany Znidersic, Division Chief, Park Planning and Capital Development ; and Lucresha Murphy-Tate, PARKnerships and Community Matching Fund Manager – all of whom have done an incredible job bringing awareness to how public-private partnerships can provide a means to bringing Schuyler Hamilton Jones skatepark back to its original glory.
Lucresha Murphy-Tate worked with Eli and his parents, Mo Fathelbabb and Sally Hurley, on a proposal, addressing specific park-repair needs and cost estimates. Eli also worked with his uncle, an engineer, to develop the details of the proposal,
Around this time, public awareness began to increase, thanks to the interconnectedness of the skating community’s social media presence.
Jose Ayala, who also has avid skaters in his family, enthusiastically worked with Eli and his family to collect data on specific park equipment features, flows, planning layouts, and setups. This allowed the group to concretely notate which priority items should be on the receiving end of funding pools from public-private partnerships.
Since the project is ongoing and dynamic situation, the official total cost is still being finalized. However, both Eli’s family and the City of Alexandria have shared some creative and innovative ways to pool funds to make this restoration project a reality:
The Alexandria Community Matching Fund says if the community can raise half of whatever the final cost will be for renovations, the Fund will match the other half. Amount matches can range anywhere from $5,000 to $50,000, and at most $100,00.
Eli’s family wants to get the attention of the Tony Hawk Foundation, which provides funds for meaningful skatepark development all across the United States. Both the city and Eli’s family have seen proofs of concept before with other nearby skatepark One example is DC’s Shaw Skatepark. In that case, crowdfunding efforts were matched by the District’s parks and recreation department.
As this project’s plans are being finalized Alexandria hosted a community feedback event on Saturday March 29. Survey results from the community were made public, and park-goers had the opportunity to prioritize the elements of the renovation efforts should receive the most attention.
While describing the close-knit atmosphere and camaraderie of the skating community in Northern Virginia and DC, Eli said having access to the park would bring the area back to its “iconic era.”
His father loves the fact that the skatepark instills valuable lessons of perseverance and hard work. Skaters have to truly dedicate large amounts of time and effort in order to perfect their skills, tricks, and overall craft. His mother loves that the skatepark is a unifying place for people from all walks of life to experience a safe and authentic sense of community and cohesion.
If you would like to donate to the cause, reach out to Alexandria’s recreation department for further information.
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