Harmon Park Upgrade: Harmon skate park’s renewal and what skaters think of the project

The Prairie Village City Council approved a construction change order on Dec. 24 that will allow the Overland Park-based O’Donnell and Sons Construction Company to rebuild Harmon Skate Park.

The project is scheduled to begin in March and will consist of a complete renewal of the park’s cement, along with adding new accommodations such as rails, ramps, a new event space and a longer brick path leading into the park.

According to Prairie Village’s city website, the process will take around six months to complete and is projected to end somewhere around Aug. 1. The city will also host community design workshops dedicated to ensuring the people of Prairie Village will be satisfied with the project’s end result.

According to regular Harmon Park skater and sophomore James Brame, the park was originally built in 2000 and has since received little to no care in terms of maintenance of the park’s cement and integrity of the structures within them. Rain and constant skater use has caused the rails to rust and the weathered concrete to crack, creating problems for frequent visitors to the park.

The chief complaint from many skaters, according to Brame is that the cracks and debris created by the deteriorating concrete has turned the park into a minefield of hazards that even the most experienced skaters have difficulty navigating.

“I’ve been skating for around four years now after my uncle introduced me to it and Harmon Park has always been our home because it’s so close to all of us,” Brame said. “But from the very start, the place was always sort of falling apart. Our wheels always hit pebbles laying on the ground, and we end up eating it hard.”

Kids that skate there now expect to leave with a few scrapes and bruises because the ground is warped from various weather conditions. Chunks of concrete are strewn about the park, leaving even larger cracks and holes in the already uneven surface.

“There’s like fat chunks taken out of the slopes, and you get caught up in those a lot,” Brame said. “My friend, just the other day, hit a pretty big crack in the ground and was sent flying across the park. It’s just another example of why everyone says that place teaches you how to fall.”

The disrepair isn’t just limited to the ground. According to Brame, the coping — which is the edge of the bowl or halfpipe — has been wearing away to the point where it isn’t even attached to anything at all.

“Literally the coping on one of the ledges was stolen because it fell off,” Brame said.

“There’s also a ton of graffiti and all the signs are broken. It’s a pretty messed up park to be honest, so this change is definitely a welcomed one.”

Brame isn’t the only one who is excited about the new park. Senior Noah Scheffler is one of many regulars at the park as well that are awaiting the day that they get to break in the new park with their boards.

“I feel like with a more welcoming and straight forward design, it’ll be a lot more appealing to beginner skaters and will probably get more people from other parks to come more frequently,” Scheffler said. “Most of the regulars know about the plans to change the park, and they are just as stoked about it as I am.”

And with his excitement, Scheffler has three main hopes for the outcome of the park.

“For one, I want more standard features like stairs and rails that can ease people in,” Scheffler said. “Secondly, new ramps with good coping and enough run up. [And third,] I also want a bowl that isn’t terrifying. I just want things to be a little more welcoming with more quality materials and better upkeep.”

As the project continues to develop, skaters such as Scheffler and Brame will patiently await the completion of the new and improved Harmon Skate Park — one with less decay.