News Photo by Steve Schulwitz Levi Behnke, left, and his mother Marlena Gibson share their concerns about the condition of the skate park in Alpena. Gibson said the condition of the park is poor and encouraged the Alpena Municipal Council to repair, improve, and better maintain it.

ALPENA — Residents made their voices heard about the future of Culligan Plaza and Riverside Skate Park during Monday’s Alpena Municipal Council meeting.

The city recently decided to move forward with improvements to Culligan Plaza, but once a preliminary design rendering was released, it sparked backlash from many people who were disappointed in the proposed plan.

People were also upset the community wasn’t involved in the creative process and the price tag of the proposed project.

The project is on hold until the local Culligan Plaza committee meeting later this month, where the design and direction of the project will be reconsidered. The immediate future of the skate park is still up in the air, but the city intends to get the park repaired and open as soon as it can.

Things came to a head at Monday’s meeting as public comment on the two proposed projects went well over an hour.

It was recommended during the council meeting that some members of the public be included in future meetings to help shape the plaza project.

Last week, city officials closed the popular skate park on 9th Avenue until further notice, saying it has become unsafe. In a press release, the city said it is working with several ramp supply companies to obtain the necessary materials and specialized labor — if needed — to make the repairs.

That news didn’t sit well with many residents and a campaign to update the park with concrete ramps and make it more appealing for local youth quickly began.

The skate park was born from an effort between a skateboarding and in-line skating group, citizens, and the city. It resulted in the development of this community recreational skateboarding park, which has been a hit for children and teens for many years.

Campaign organizer Isaac Boda said the skate park is a vital amenity for local youth and he believes the kids deserve a facility that’s fun and safe, but also able to endure the wear and tear of Northeast Michigan’s weather.

He said a concrete park would be more durable and allow for scooters to be used on the park’s ramps. Boda added that he believed the city should have done a better job of maintaining the park and improving it through the years.

“I was there for the grand opening and I remember the temporary park before the skate park was built,” Boda said. “My son has made all of his friends at that park and it brings people together, especially kids. All of this should have been done years ago and the fact it has gotten to the point where it had to be closed down is an embarrassment to the taxpayers.”

City Engineer Steve Shultz said the skate part has deteriorated to the point where it was unsafe and needed to be closed. He said about two years ago the city began reaching out to contractors that specialize in skate parks, but calls weren’t returned.

Now, Shultz said, he is in the process of organizing a group of interested partners to research and plan for the future of the skate park, which would include immediate repairs and making larger improvements in the future.

“There are a lot of things I want to talk about with the group that we are building right now about,” he said. “This is how this project will get done, is by having people involved. But right now, we want to get the park back up and running. It might be a two phase process. Repair what is there, and then look into a redesign.”

A group wanting more say in the new design for Culligan Plaza were added to the council meeting agenda last week. They have expressed concerns — mostly on social media — about the future of the park and that the community had little say in the new design.

The proposed rendering of the plaza shows a smaller fountain built in one of the park’s corners, while archways and a large lighted tower — capable of changing colors — would be erected near the park’s front.

Much of the furor over the design was centered on the tower, which Councilwoman Cindy Johnson said during the meeting will likely be removed from the design.

People also voiced their displeasure about the removal of several of the current plaza’s trees in the rendering, and how the project is being funded.

The budget for the project is $320,000. A combination of funding from the city’s American Rescue Plan Act and grants from the First Federal Foundation and the Alpena Youth and Recreation Committee would pay for the proposed improvements.

Petitions pertaining to both projects were posted on Change.org, which is an online petition. As of Monday afternoon, the petition to reconsider the design of the downtown plaza had about 1,200 signatures and the Convert the Alpena Skatepark from Wood to Concrete petition had nearly 800 supporters.

Not all of the people who signed the petition are from Alpena, according to a News analysis.