Proposed skate park in Libby needs a home

It’s been nearly 30 years since Libby had a skate park, but an effort has risen again in hopes of installing a new park.

At the Dec. 16 meeting, Libby City Councilors were unanimous in supporting the creation of a skatepark, but that was the only consensus attained.

Many who spoke at the meeting did not believe an area behind the Lee Gehring Memorial Field was an appropriate location for the structure.

Steve Schnackenberg, who owns Schnackenberg Funeral Home on West Second Street, said he appreciated the thoughts skatepark organizers had for the kids.

“It’s a wonderful idea, but there’s zero room for growth there. When baseball season begins, I’ve got people parking on my lawn and I can’t afford to lose any more parking for the business,” Schnackenberg said.

Jennifer Nelson, a member of the city zoning and planning boards, said she supported the idea, but doesn’t think the site behind the baseball field is appropriate.

“I’ve seen that little park be used as a meditative spot by families following funerals,” she said. “I think a better spot is the city land off Croteau Road where the youth ballfields are located. There’s quite a bit of space there.”

The first Libby Skate Park opened in 1993 at the corner of Larch Street and Utah Avenue.

According to previous reporting in The Western News it closed in the spring of 1996 due to a lack of interest and an impending insurance bill.

Sometime after that, the park was demolished.

At a Dec. 12 Cemetery Parks Committee, Chair Melissa Berke said the group recommended the request.

“We think it would be a nice addition,” she said.

Hugh Taylor made a motion to approve building a park and Kristin Smith seconded it. 

But Taylor said he doesn’t think the area behind the Legion ball field is big enough. 

“There’s not enough room to grow there,” Taylor said.

Council President Brian Zimmerman agreed that parking would be an issue.

Berke said she received another idea for the location in the green space next to the city tennis courts.

But Mayor Peggy Williams pointed out that if water or sewer lines in that area needed to be dug up, a skatepark could be destroyed in the process.

Libby’s Ben Montgomery is leading the project and he is getting help from Spokane-based non-profit Big Feelings and Jarad Phoenix, who lives near Whitefish.

Phoenix said the group trying to get the park built checked out several areas in Libby.

“The area behind the ball field has some issues with transients and if there’s a park there with some lighting and activity, it may encourage police patrols there,” Phoenix said. “I don’t see this being a $500,000 project. It’s a much more modest plan.”

Libby resident Justice Fahland said he learned to skate here.

“It’s an activity that will keep kids off their phones and keep them active,” Fahland said. 

Other skate park advocates said the location behind the Legion ball field was more than adequate because most kids would ride their boards to the park.

Another who spoke said he didn’t much expansion was likely because it had been so many years since the last one existed. 

City resident John Bebee said an open space near his home or at the fish pond could be used for the park.

“I really want to outdo Troy,” Bebee said.

The proposed structure would be a 23-foot by 18-foot half-pipe. It would need a concrete foundation. The necessary insurance would add $167 a year to the city’s insurance costs, according to Berke’s memo to the city.

The LOR Foundation said it would be able to secure a grant to cover the cost of about $25,000 to $30,000.

Troy’s skatepark, located at Roosevelt Park, began construction in 2022 and ended last year.