MALIBU—A temporary skate park, adjacent to the site of the proposed permanent Bluffs Skate Park which is expected to open in 2021, reopened after a period of closure due to violations of safety measures during the COVID-19 pandemic. The temporary park reopened on Monday, August 31 with new COVID-19 guidelines in place.
On July 3, the city of Malibu opened a temporary skate park for the community with a reservation system and social distancing requirements. Nine days later, the park closed due to a lack of masks, skaters staying longer than their reservation, and people not social distancing. The skate park is fenced in, but that did not stop skaters from jumping the fence to get in.
The temporary park is open only by reservation. Operating hours are from Monday through Friday from 11:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m. Operating hours will be adjusted through the fall and winter, as sunset occurs earlier in the evening, according to the Malibu city website under the “Skate Park” section.
Skaters can reserve one two-hour skate session through the online reservation system every other day, up to one week in advance, which can be accessed at https://booking.appointy.com/en-US/jbobbett/bookings/calendar?sr=753211.
On September 2, the city of Malibu discussed plans for the permanent park in a four-hour long virtual session. Malibu closed its only skate park in 2011.
After much debate over the location and funding, the Malibu City Council approved a plan in February 2019 to build a $300,000 temporary skate park adjacent to the site of the Malibu Bluffs Park at what is now known as the Case property.
Malibu’s previous skate park, Papa Jack’s, closed in 2011 to provide room for a Whole Foods supermarket. Since its closing, the Malibu community asked for a permanent skate park to be built.
Optimistic of the construction project for the 12,500 square foot permanent skate park, Community Service Director Bobbett said, “One of our selling points with [city] council was that when the permanent skate park is done we hope we can get 20 percent of the cost of the equipment back if we sell it. It is very high-grade. It’s X Games quality. It’s that good.”
Updates on the status of the temporary skate park and the proposed Bluffs Park can be accessed at the official Malibu City website at: https://malibucity.org/skatepark.
