Constable Steve Pallett made the announcement at a meeting attended by about 150 people at the Town Hall, held to discuss what progress was being made to replace the current facility at the New North Quay.
Ports of Jersey closed the skate park last month after youngsters threw concrete blocks into the nearby marina and were caught on CCTV climbing onto the roof of the Jersey Maritime Museum warehouse building. Ports bosses later agreed to temporarily reopen the facility at weekends but have warned that it will close permanently on 1 September.
Mr Pallett, who attended the meeting organised by Deputy Russell Labey, said: ‘We will be approaching a consultant in the UK to conduct feasibility studies and appraisals as we do not have someone with the same level of experience in Jersey. The companies we are talking to have worked on these sorts of projects before. It will cost between £11,000 and £12,000 but they will provide the right support and expertise needed in order to put a good proposal forward.’
The Constable also expressed his surprise at the large number of people who attended and said that regular meetings would now be held to keep the skateboard and BMX community up to date.
‘It was much better attended than I thought it would be – I expected about half a dozen people but there is clearly a passion for a new park there,’ he said. ‘We also now have a working group of about ten or 12 people up and running who will be responsible for driving the project forward.’
Mr Pallett also stressed that any new facility needed to be aesthetically pleasing to all Islanders and a facility that its users wanted.
‘It has got to be something which is iconic and special to Jersey, something that we can be proud of and inspired by,’ he said. ‘It also needs to be a quality design, which can cater for all standards of skateboarders and BMX riders from your beginners right up to your Alex Coleborns [a professional athlete from Jersey], if you want to perform at that level.’
Another meeting to discuss plans is due to be held in around a month’s time.
