DTLA skateboarding scene may be at odds with new city ordinance
Kylie Reynolds/blogdowntown
(From left) Marco Velasquezz, Jimi Bufit and Nick Velasco skateboarded along Los Angeles Street Wednesday. They said downtown L.A. is a popular spot for skateboarding and "bombing."
DOWNTOWN LOS ANGELES — The Los Angeles City Council passed an ordinance this week intended to prevent “reckless” skateboarding in the city, but some downtown locals say they don’t think it will have much of an impact on the way boarders ride in DTLA.
Under the regulations, which were approved unanimously at Tuesday’s city council meeting, skateboarders must obey traffic signs and speed limits, and maintain a speed of 10 mph when crossing intersections.
The proposal also limits the popular practice of “bombing,” where skateboarders gain high speeds by crouching in a 90 degree angle while riding down steep hills. Boarders can still “bomb” as long as they stand upright, according to the ordinance.
Downtown L.A. -- with its many hills and structures -- is a skater’s dream.
“You just have to use your imagination,” said one Downtown boarder, Marco Velasquezz, about the stairs, ramps and ledges around the area that provide ample places to skateboard.
Velasquezz, 24, said bombing is a regular practice in downtown L.A., and he doesn’t intend on changing the way he does it.
It is the safety concerns associated with bombing that led Councilman Joe Buscaino to propose the ordinance to the city council. Two teenage boys died earlier this year from injuries incurred while bombing in San Pedro.
Nick Velasco, a 21-year-old who comes to Downtown from his home in East L.A. in order to skate, was hanging out with his board at the corner of 1st and Los Angeles streets on Wednesday. He said he heard about the deaths in San Pedro and can understand why people have safety concerns about skating, but he still doesn't support more regulations on the activity.
Both Velasco and Velasquezz agreed that skateboarders are still going to bomb and break traffic rules, regardless of the ordinance.
“It’s not going to mean a difference, we are still going to do what we love,” Velaquezz said.
He added, however, that there could be more confrontations between police and skateboarders in the future if skaters do not follow the regulations.
Aya Ogawa of Non Factory, a skate shop in Little Tokyo, said she views the ordinance as just another limitation placed on skateboarders. Some DTLA skaters already break regulations, she said, often boarding in restricted areas or breaking safety laws requiring riders under 18 to wear helmets. She expects that a lot of skaters will continue boarding like normal without getting caught and fined for violating the new regulations.
“A lot of skaters already know how to deal with police and security,” she said.
Ogawa hopes the ordinance does not negatively affect business by reducing the number of skaters in the area, but she said it is still too early to tell.
Pershing was a square on August 09, 2012, at 10:58AM – #1
I could honestly care less if they want to kill themselves. But it's not fair to pedestrians or bikes who have to dodge their idiocy. I saw someone have to literally yank their dog off its feet to avoid getting hit by one of these morons. Build a skate park somewhere for them and get them off the street.
Deal4 (@Deal4) on August 09, 2012, at 11:41AM – #2
I’ve never had a problem with the Skaters on Spring St. Actually they have always been nice to us. They ride fast sometimes but in 3 years I have yet to see any kind of accident. My first rescue dog was very scared of skateboards but one skater started to say hi to her every morning and help her to break that fear. I know they are not an organized group but the ones I’ve met are great guys.
Katherine McNenny on August 09, 2012, at 12:02PM – #3
Pershing was a square...yes, we should build a skate park somewhere, maybe in our Industrial area? skateboarding is not a crime- its helping keep the youth healthy. we should be supporting this activity DT, or i should say i support this activity.
zeMinimalist (@zeMinimalist) on August 09, 2012, at 09:34PM – #4
I think skateboarding tends to be associated with a rebellious culture. Skateboarding itself is obviously not a crime, but often skateboarders tend to break rules, even if they're small rules. Notice I'm not saying all, but many are this way. When it comes to skateboarding down sidewalks, I feel the same way towards that as cycling down a sidewalk, and that is sidewalks are for pedestrians. Like cycling, skateboarding can be an integral part of how people get around the city, it's just not going to be accepted if it's anarchy. We live in this community together, it sure doesn't seem like there's anything wrong with the above rules.
I would like to add that coming to a complete stop at an intersection adds little to no value toward safety. If it's safe to go, stop signs and red lights should be treated like yield signs. And to make this safer, speeds should be lowered and less entitlement should be given to drivers on green lights. A hurry up and wait system is dangerous and does little to improve traffic flow. Most downtown intersections shoud definitely be upgraded to operate at a human level. It'd do wonders to safety, local business, quality of life, and of course property values. Roads catered to cars with traffic lights is the suburban way to go, which of course is becoming less desirable every month.
In this environment, there's less reason for skateboarders to be rebellious and so long as they respect their fellow road users, all will be good.
Kevin Skull Patrick on September 13, 2012, at 11:02AM – #5
Heres the deal skaters were trying to get the city to build A skatepark at the Old Taylor Trian Yard where they built A Hugh park ! LA needs to build A skatepark in or near DTLA !