Parisite Skatepark
Transitional Spaces
Transitional Spaces is a Louisiana non-profit dedicated to designing and implementing quality skateparks in New Orleans that focus on safe recreation and educational opportunities for youth. It aims to provide accessible, and inclusive spaces for users. Since 2012, Transitional Spaces has primarily focused on legalizing, developing and maintaining Parisite Skatepark.
Co Director 2014 - 2020
As Co-Director of a small team, the undertaking of this large project meant I had to switch between professional hats constantly. I ran successful fundraising campaigns on kickstarter, which involved organizing media rollouts, producing promotional videos, and art directing merchandise in collaboration with graphic artists. I project managed three phase builds overseeing the design, official approvals, and construction processes. This necessitated the facilitation of human-centered design sessions and public design charrettes.
Challenges
New Orleans was the largest city in the U.S. without a public skatepark. Skateboarding, the third most popular sport with youth, builds self-confidence as skaters interact with their environment and each other. Skateparks foster creativity, self-expression, cooperation, and leadership skills in the midst of a city facing an unstable education system and high levels of crime.
In 2012, a group of skaters got together and started a DIY skatepark at the intersection of Interstate 610 and Paris Avenue (hence the name ‘Paris Site’). City officials took notice of the park and threatened to shut it down.
In addition to park legalization, this project faced numerous challenges including navigating complex approvals processes and promoting park-user agency as the development structure shifted from a DIY to a process with more red-tape. Additionally, the park was self-financed by Transitional Spaces requiring significant fundraising efforts.
Solutions
Phase Building - By building out Parisite in phases, Transitional Spaces is able to develop the park in spite of financial constraints. These builds are all informed by the park's master plan and are often developed in collaboration with community partners.
Human-Centered Approach - Transitional Spaces solicits user feedback through community forums and posting plans at the park and on social media. Park-users continue to maintain agency over the park through human-centered design charrettes and by participating on design teams. Cultivating a culture of user-agency over the space contributes to a positive atmosphere, empowers users to work to maintain the space, and helps to support fundraising efforts.
Results
Since 2012, Transitional Spaces has completed four phase builds at Parisite. As a community-supported enterprise funded by grants, public and private partnerships, and social marketing campaigns we remained 100% independent from the New Orleans’ city budget. We successfully navigated an ambiguous landscape that lacked precedence. These successes serve as positive feedback and motivate Transitional Spaces to keep developing, a 5th phase is under-way. At the macro-level the skatepark is a landscape architecture project, however Parisite is very much a product of a community-centered design process that exemplifies the power of collective action.
I worked alongside community partners and the local government to transform Parisite from a small illegal DIY skatepark in a derelict space to a 50,000 sq ft of vibrant public park. This project received the Rudy Bruner Award for Urban Excellence and the Design Corps Seed Award. My personal barometer for success, and what sustained me throughout the project, is the presence of a supportive atmosphere and magnetic energy at the park. I fed off of seeing people teaching each other and progressing together, embracing one another, and feeling ownership over the space that they helped create.