February 3, 2014

"Hoodie-Wearing Teens"

Photo by Pat Christman via Mankato Free Press.

The Chelsey YMCA Skatepark in Mankato burned down Saturday morning. No one was inside and no injuries were reported. The fire happened the day after a month-long renovation of the indoor section of the park was completed. The cause of the fire is unknown, and in the story linked above, the CEO of Mankato area YMCAs said he hoped the park would be rebuilt, though he couldn't say that it would be, with certainty.

Collective memory says 'Kato opened in 1996, and, at least for a bit, it was the only indoor spot that was open to the public in the state. The park's early years could be called its outlaw years; for a time it stood, unlocked and unstaffed, a mini-ramp and street course a winter roadtrip away. Later in the 90's the park went legit and had hours of operation and staffing, eventually an outdoor street course and plenty of iterations inside. There's a fundraising page for the park here. Below, a couple of clips that feature 'Kato:

There's also some older 'Kato in the park section from Shitheads Vol. 8, starting around the 3:56 mark (link prompt won't allow me to start it there).

Elsewhere, if you've been around for a bit and want a little perspective on just how long you've been around, St. Paul's finest, David Jaimes, is 25-years-old today. Happy birthday, old man.

1 comment:

Carps said...

From the day it opened in 96 to the day I moved to mpls in 2000 the homies and I were there pretty much every day. The glory days of the park in my mind!
Carps