Tony Hawk "Proud, Excited" To Open Skate Park In Downtown Detroit

By: Will Burchfield
@burchie_kid

"This corner's gonna be hot," said one passerby to another as they crossed Farmer Street at Monroe Avenue around lunchtime on Tuesday afternoon.

Behind them, in what used to be an abandoned lot, skateboarders of all ages cruised up and down halfpipes. Spectators hung out along the surrounding fence line. Punk-rock music filled the air.

Amid it all was Tony Hawk, signing skateboards and riding his own, happy to have helped bring Wayfinding Skate Park to life.

It opened on Tuesday afternoon in downtown Detroit.

"Skating is something that is definitely a big part of Detroit, but something that hasn't been very well-supported in terms of facilities. So this is one step in that right direction," Hawk said.

Wayfinding was proposed about a year ago by Detroit-based art gallery Library Street Collective, who soon teamed up with the Cranbrook Art Museum and Dan Gilbert's real estate firm Bedrock and the Quicken Loans Family of Companies.

Said Dan Mullen, president of Bedrock Detroit, "It's about us looking at how the community comes together and creating social experiences here in Detroit."

Library Street Collective co-founder Anthony Curis reached out to Hawk to see if he'd like to be involved. Hawk, whose wife is from Detroit, was surprised he hadn't heard anything about the project beforehand.

"I feel like I'm on the pulse of most of the skate-park projects in this area," he said.

Curis told Hawk it was a secret. Hawk told Curis he was in. 

"I think I got blueprints two days later," said Hawk. "We sent our version of that back to them and they started construction within the week. This is probably the fastest skate-park project I've seen come together." 

Hawk worked closely with Alec Beck, programs manager of the Tony Hawk Foundation, to finalize the layout of the park.

"I don't wanna take the credit for it necessarily. If you like it, you can give me the credit. If you don't like it, you can blame Alec," joked Hawk.

Wayfinding was built by Modern Skate and Surf, whose team worked into the wee hours of Tuesday morning to complete the final touchings. It will be open Sunday through Thursday from noon to 8 and Friday and Saturday from noon to 11. Entry is free.

The park will be relocated in January 2018, when construction for Bedrock's Monroe Block project is set to begin.

A skate park first, Wayfinding is also a public art installation. This part of the project was driven by visual artist Ryan McGinness, who has created skate-park installations for New York's Museum of Modern Art.

Hawk, before hopping on his skateboard for a live demonstration, stepped back up to the podium to thank McGinness.

"A huge part of making this happen. He actually sent me a photo of a T-shirt that I signed for him in 1986 at Virginia Beach," Hawk recalled. "So this guy's OG and he's passionate about skateboarding."

Curis added that the function of Wayfinding remains open-ended. There are already ideas being discussed for ancillary displays and performances.

"If anything, we hope this park inspires dialogue for additional parks and opportunities throughout the city," Curis said.

For Hawk, the whole project, culminating in Tuesday's opening, was a homecoming of sorts. He owns a house in Detroit's Woodbridge neighborhood and enjoys spending time in the area with his family.

"Every time we come to visit with the kids we love it more and more," he said.

He was excited, he said, to see Wayfinding come to fruition.

"We're really proud that it's a free facility. We're proud that it's here in central downtown. Hope you guys like it," said Hawk. "Thanks for including me."