Pop's Playground

Grand opening Sat., July 25, 3-5 p.m., free, Pop's Playground, Huntingdon Street and Trenton Avenue, popsplayground.org.

by Kristen Humbert

Mazur/www.focusskatemag.com

[ just opened ]

It took a village to build Pop's Playground, a new Kenzo skate park.

Spearheaded by the New Kensington Community Development Corp. (NKCDC) and Steve Miller, owner of skate shop Exit Philadelphia, it was constructed entirely by local volunteers. And the majority of its funding came from Exit's art sales and NKCDC's beef 'n' beer bashes.

North Philly residents were eager to transform the space into a skate park because it was once a run-down rec center, known for attracting drug dealers and littered with graffiti. Come this Saturday, though, it'll be a mixed-use skaters' haven, with ramps and ledges blending in with trees and bushes, which Exit skateboarders will demo during the grand opening. The 60-by-110-foot park also features mini-tributes to city icons, like a replica of the statues outside the African American Museum of Philadelphia.

But Miller, who's already been approached by the Philadelphia Department of Recreation to renovate other parks, isn't satisfied stopping there. "We need more small, neighborhood parks for kids," he says. Hopefully, he'll find more villagers who concur.

Grand opening Sat., July 25, 3-5 p.m., free, Pop's Playground, Huntingdon Street and Trenton Avenue, popsplayground.org.