Luke Norton, a local senior at UNC Wilmington first experienced the Elizabethtown Skate Park during Covid. Now he is using his fall internship to build awareness of the park and its needs.

Norton, who is studying tourism, is working with the Elizabethtown-White Lake Chamber of Commerce on their outdoor recreation initiatives. He developed a plan to build awareness of the park by first inviting expert Terry Grimble of DaVille Skate Shop to speak at the Chamber Member Meeting on October 17. Eight years ago, Grimble was a consultant on the development of the skate park, located in the block behind the Elizabethtown Town Hall and next to Leinwand Park.  He also ran an annual competition at the Park that attracted people from all over the region up until a few years ago.

Grimble explained to the over 30 attendees that skate parks are used by skateboarders, in-line skaters and BMX riders. Grimble says that skate parks are a plus to communities because they promote a healthy active outdoors activity and help kids develop their self-esteem. He also said that they have been shown to lower crime. 

Skateboarding is growing in popularity since being added to the Olympics. Grimble reported that in a study of high school students, skateboarding was the 3rd interest for most teenagers, the 4th most used sport in term of recreational hours, and the 3rd least expensive sport. He has even seen some areas start to build school teams or offer skateboarding classes. 

The Elizabethtown Skate Park is maintained by the Town of Elizabethtown. Grimble recently finished an assessment of the facility, stating that it was in good shape but a maintenance plan should be established.

Grimble advised the group that in order to support the sport in town, a retail space should be identified and a support group established. 

Norton thanked Grimble for attending, presenting him with a Community Service award. Norton plans to make a presentation to Town staff and start a "Friends of the Skate Board Park" as another part of his project.