CHAD Skatepark Design Program

Franklin’s Paine has partnered with the Charter High School for Architecture and Design (CHAD) for a new kind of after school skateboarding club.  The program meets once a week alternating between skate sessions and design session with the goal of merging the student’s passions for skateboarding and design.  During the design sessions, instructors work with the students to create unique elements of a skatepark while considering issues such as cost, implementation, and stormwater management.  The students completed a 3D model of their proposed skatepark design at the close of the 2010 school year and this design has now been refined and digitally rendered.  The alternating skate sessions allow the students the opportunity to skate existing parks and obstacles while evaluating the spaces based on skatability, materials, and usage. 

The ultimate goal is to work with Philadelphia Parks and Recreation, and local community groups to build the student designed skatepark at Granahan Playground located at 65th and Callowhill Streets.  Franklin’s Paine and members of the CHAD program presented the proposal to the Granahan community during a December 2010 community meeting.  The proposal was met with great support and the students are currently working to amend the design slightly to respond to input and suggestions from the community.

Through this process, the students have come to understand the process of creating a skatepark from initial design through value engineering and ultimately, final construction.