INDIANAPOLIS – On Saturday July 9, Mayor Joe Hogsett joined community members to unveil the Willard Park Skatepark, which is located at 1901 E. Washington Street and is the first skatepark to be built in Indianapolis in more than 20 years.
The 13,000 square foot skatepark features granite blocks from the old City County Building plaza and artistic concrete forms to create jumps, grinding, and trick skating opportunities. The space honors the School for the Deaf, as well as skaters Kyle Stuffy and Ethan Williams.
During construction, skatepark designer Hunger Skate Parks implemented several pieces of art to acknowledge Willard Park and skateboarders who were killed before the skatepark opened.
In tribute to the park’s history as the first site for the School for the Deaf, the skatepark spells out Indianapolis in sign language on a metal ground tail. Artist and skater Kyle Stuffy is memorialized on a quarter pipe with an acid-stained little tree freshener pattern. An open book skating feature honors the life of skater and scholar Ethan Williams, who served as a Mayor’s Youth Leadership Council member and was killed in New York in 2020.
Skating advocates and Indy Parks are committed to using the Willard Park Skatepark as an example for future park development efforts.
