After a first meeting in July to hear from Bay County skateboarders and BMX bike enthusiasts about what they would like to see at the new, roughly 18,000-square-foot skate park planned for the Bay County Sports Complex at Panama City Beach, a final virtual meeting is scheduled for 6:30 p.m. Thursday, Aug. 13. The public is invited to log on and participate.
Project designer Team Pain, a more than 30-year-old, Orlando-based firm that specializes in designing and building skate parks worldwide, is hosting the online, interactive meeting. The $1 million project is a collaborative effort between Bay County government and the Tourist Development Council (TDC).
“Currently, Bay County has few options for skate park enthusiasts, and we are planning on changing that,” Tim Payne, Team Pain owner, said. “We gathered a lot of information from locals at the initial meeting, and we will be sharing our preliminary concept, based on that meeting, to open up discussion about how to make the new park as usable and engaging as possible while still maintaining a high level of fun.”
Skateboarding has been a way of life for Payne for more than 30 years, he said, and every member of his team has a connection to the industry. He said his company has built more than 200 skate parks globally, and is one of the premier designers and builders in the world, providing courses for the X Games, MTV Sports and Music Festivals, various movie and television productions and worked with many professional skateboarders and bikers over the years. Team Pain was also one of only three companies invited to submit a proposal for the skateboard courses to be held at the upcoming Tokyo Olympics.
Once the design concept is completed, it will be presented to the Parks and Recreation Advisory Board for approval, Bay County General Services Assistant Director Jason Jowers said.
“After that, we will begin developing the construction bid documents for advertisement,” Jowers said. “We hope people will tune in to this meeting to ensure that the elements Tim has included in the concept are reflective of the community’s desires.”
To join the meeting, click here and enter the following:
Access Code: 670-795-789
Website: https://www.gotomeet.me/TeamPain/baycountyskatepark