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Rainier Beach Skatepark Is Open

Rainier Beach Skatepark opened September 21 at 4707 S. Cloverdale Street, a $4,350,000 project eight years in the making.

<h6>Seattle Fitness Magazine · 22 Sep 2026</h6><ul><li><strong>8</strong>years of work</li><li><strong>4</strong>levels of government</li><li><strong>$4.35M</strong>total budget</li></ul><h2>A kid skating in the rain started Rainier Beach Skatepark</h2> <p><b>Danielle Jackson watched a kid ride a skateboard down Renton Avenue in the rain.</b></p><p>She thought, &quot;There&#x27;s gotta be somewhere where our kids can go skate,&quot; South Seattle Emerald reported in 2022. A skatepark for Rainier Beach grew from that sight, and CHAMPS dates the project to 2018. The park opened September 21, 2026.</p><p>Seattle Parks and Recreation announced the opening that day with CHAMPS Resource and Service Center and Parents for Skateparks, billing it as a community-initiated all wheels skatepark at the edge of Rainier Beach Playfield. It sits at 4707 S. Cloverdale Street. The Emerald wrote that the park represents eight years of work by Jackson and her team at CHAMPS.</p> <h2>The site sat on a city plan for years</h2> <p><b>Seattle&#x27;s Citywide Skatepark Plan dates to 2007.</b></p><p>The Seattle Parks Foundation wrote in 2022 that it answered a 2006 City Council resolution recognizing skateboarding as a healthy and popular recreation sport. The plan identified Rainier Beach as an ideal location, the foundation said, with a community center, four schools and recreation space nearby.</p><p>Jackson found that plan, and the Emerald reported that Rainier Beach Playfield was one of the sites it pointed to. Scott Shinn sat on its committee. He cofounded Parents for Skateparks. The Emerald&#x27;s February 2022 story described her first community meeting, on January 19. It ran more than 10 breakout rooms for a design game, with participants placing markers such as skate bowls, benches and ramps on a map of the site. By then she still needed a little more than $2 million.</p> <h2>CHAMPS and Parents for Skateparks built the case</h2> <p><b>Jackson is president and founder of CHAMPS Resource and Service Center.</b></p><p>CHAMPS works from 7728 Rainier Avenue South. It says it has advocated and volunteered for Southeast Seattle since 1999 and, through 211 and partner organizations, points residents to housing, substance abuse support, and low-cost medical and dental care.</p><p>Parents for Skateparks dates itself to 2004. Its site says it has been connecting kids to resources for building skateparks in their own neighborhoods since then. The Seattle Parks and Recreation project page thanks CHAMPS for bringing the community together and advocating for the park. It says CHAMPS hosted groups of young people to discuss a skateboard park in southeast Seattle that would attract youth and provide a safe gathering place. It also lists Parents for Skateparks and Skate Like a Girl as close partners.</p> <h2>A bowl, street terrain and a lunar flow plaza</h2> <p><b>Seattle Parks describes a mix of street and transition-style terrain, with elements for all age groups and ability levels.</b></p><p>The department says the park challenges both beginners and experienced users. The Emerald reported in September that the 31,000-square-foot park includes a skating bowl, a walking path and a section of smooth rises and dips called the lunar flow plaza.</p> <h2>Four levels of government paid for it</h2> <p><b>The project page puts the total budget at $4,350,000.</b></p><p>Federal, state, county and city money went in alongside private fundraising, four levels of government in all. The department funded design and construction with grants from the National Park Service&#x27;s Land and Water Conservation Fund, the Washington State Recreation and Conservation Office and the King County Parks Levy. The page lists $1,500,000 from the state office. King County&#x27;s levy line reads $850,000.</p><p>A Neighborhood Matching Fund award from the Seattle Department of Neighborhoods started the project. Neighborhood fundraising and labor backed it. Community artist Myron Curry was finalizing the mural when the park opened, and the department said he would keep working in the park and asked visitors to respect his space.</p> <h2>What the city announced for October 10</h2> <p>The city announced the ribbon cutting and community celebration for Saturday, October 10, from 2 to 4 p.m. Free beginner lessons from Skate Like a Girl were on the program, with registration and equipment fitting at 1:30 p.m. and the official ribbon cutting at 2:15. The schedule listed music, a skate jam and giveaways until 4.</p><p>Skate Like a Girl&#x27;s Seattle page lists Monday and Thursday night sessions for women and trans skaters at All Together Skatepark. Lessons run 7 to 8 p.m. Registration is required. Carlee Heger of Skate Like a Girl told the Emerald in September that its vision for the Rainier Beach park includes camps, beginner pop-up lessons and mentorship through its Y.E.S. teen program.</p> <h2>Where it sits and when it is open</h2> <p><b>Seattle Parks and Recreation posts Rainier Beach Playfield&#x27;s hours as 4 a.m. to 11:30 p.m. The skatepark sits just outside the Rainier Beach Community Center.</b></p><p>The Emerald put the closest skatepark at Jefferson Park, a 40-minute bus ride from the community center with one transfer.</p> <h2>Update</h2> <p><b>Seattle Fitness Magazine updated this article on October 12, 2026.</b></p><p>An earlier version, published September 22, said the Rainier Beach Skatepark would open on October 10. Seattle Parks and Recreation opened the park on September 21, and October 10 was the date set for the official ribbon cutting and community celebration. The earlier version also cited a $40,000 mural fundraising goal. That figure has been removed.</p>
Seattle Fitness Magazine · 22 Sep 2026
  • 8years of work
  • 4levels of government
  • $4.35Mtotal budget

A kid skating in the rain started Rainier Beach Skatepark

Danielle Jackson watched a kid ride a skateboard down Renton Avenue in the rain.

She thought, "There's gotta be somewhere where our kids can go skate," South Seattle Emerald reported in 2022. A skatepark for Rainier Beach grew from that sight, and CHAMPS dates the project to 2018. The park opened September 21, 2026.

Seattle Parks and Recreation announced the opening that day with CHAMPS Resource and Service Center and Parents for Skateparks, billing it as a community-initiated all wheels skatepark at the edge of Rainier Beach Playfield. It sits at 4707 S. Cloverdale Street. The Emerald wrote that the park represents eight years of work by Jackson and her team at CHAMPS.

The site sat on a city plan for years

Seattle's Citywide Skatepark Plan dates to 2007.

The Seattle Parks Foundation wrote in 2022 that it answered a 2006 City Council resolution recognizing skateboarding as a healthy and popular recreation sport. The plan identified Rainier Beach as an ideal location, the foundation said, with a community center, four schools and recreation space nearby.

Jackson found that plan, and the Emerald reported that Rainier Beach Playfield was one of the sites it pointed to. Scott Shinn sat on its committee. He cofounded Parents for Skateparks. The Emerald's February 2022 story described her first community meeting, on January 19. It ran more than 10 breakout rooms for a design game, with participants placing markers such as skate bowls, benches and ramps on a map of the site. By then she still needed a little more than $2 million.

CHAMPS and Parents for Skateparks built the case

Jackson is president and founder of CHAMPS Resource and Service Center.

CHAMPS works from 7728 Rainier Avenue South. It says it has advocated and volunteered for Southeast Seattle since 1999 and, through 211 and partner organizations, points residents to housing, substance abuse support, and low-cost medical and dental care.

Parents for Skateparks dates itself to 2004. Its site says it has been connecting kids to resources for building skateparks in their own neighborhoods since then. The Seattle Parks and Recreation project page thanks CHAMPS for bringing the community together and advocating for the park. It says CHAMPS hosted groups of young people to discuss a skateboard park in southeast Seattle that would attract youth and provide a safe gathering place. It also lists Parents for Skateparks and Skate Like a Girl as close partners.

A bowl, street terrain and a lunar flow plaza

Seattle Parks describes a mix of street and transition-style terrain, with elements for all age groups and ability levels.

The department says the park challenges both beginners and experienced users. The Emerald reported in September that the 31,000-square-foot park includes a skating bowl, a walking path and a section of smooth rises and dips called the lunar flow plaza.

Four levels of government paid for it

The project page puts the total budget at $4,350,000.

Federal, state, county and city money went in alongside private fundraising, four levels of government in all. The department funded design and construction with grants from the National Park Service's Land and Water Conservation Fund, the Washington State Recreation and Conservation Office and the King County Parks Levy. The page lists $1,500,000 from the state office. King County's levy line reads $850,000.

A Neighborhood Matching Fund award from the Seattle Department of Neighborhoods started the project. Neighborhood fundraising and labor backed it. Community artist Myron Curry was finalizing the mural when the park opened, and the department said he would keep working in the park and asked visitors to respect his space.

What the city announced for October 10

The city announced the ribbon cutting and community celebration for Saturday, October 10, from 2 to 4 p.m. Free beginner lessons from Skate Like a Girl were on the program, with registration and equipment fitting at 1:30 p.m. and the official ribbon cutting at 2:15. The schedule listed music, a skate jam and giveaways until 4.

Skate Like a Girl's Seattle page lists Monday and Thursday night sessions for women and trans skaters at All Together Skatepark. Lessons run 7 to 8 p.m. Registration is required. Carlee Heger of Skate Like a Girl told the Emerald in September that its vision for the Rainier Beach park includes camps, beginner pop-up lessons and mentorship through its Y.E.S. teen program.

Where it sits and when it is open

Seattle Parks and Recreation posts Rainier Beach Playfield's hours as 4 a.m. to 11:30 p.m. The skatepark sits just outside the Rainier Beach Community Center.

The Emerald put the closest skatepark at Jefferson Park, a 40-minute bus ride from the community center with one transfer.

Update

Seattle Fitness Magazine updated this article on October 12, 2026.

An earlier version, published September 22, said the Rainier Beach Skatepark would open on October 10. Seattle Parks and Recreation opened the park on September 21, and October 10 was the date set for the official ribbon cutting and community celebration. The earlier version also cited a $40,000 mural fundraising goal. That figure has been removed.

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