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Community & Business

14 January, 2025

New-look skate park a hit with kids

THE highly anticipated reopening of the Kuranda Skate Park has been welcomed by the community, with the facility being well used over the Christmas/New Year break.


Mayor Angela Toppin with Lance Starr of TRACQS (left), and artist Jak Lilley from Paradox Creative at the skate park opening.
Mayor Angela Toppin with Lance Starr of TRACQS (left), and artist Jak Lilley from Paradox Creative at the skate park opening.

The new park re-opened on 7 December with a free BBQ, local skaters and BMX riders, and a live DJ.

The new park features 340 square metres of concrete laid around the existing skate bowl, two new shelters with seating, a water bubbler, a grinding bar for skaters, a rock retaining wall, new turf, 50 bollards around the park, and a new mural.

“The Kuranda Skate Park has been a fantastic project, and we are very excited to open the facility to Kuranda and the surrounding communities,” TRACQS community activity manager Lance Starr said.

“I would like to thank Mareeba Shire Council for their assistance, TRACQS supervisors Jason Ball and Adric Rusch, as well as the TRACQS Community Assistance Workers, who were upskilled in concreting, painting, welding, machinery operation, landscaping, and general construction.” 

Cairns-based graffiti artist Jak Lilley (Paradox Creative) was excited to take a unique approach to the artwork to complement the structural design of the facility while representing the areas and communities featured in the space: Kuranda, Koah, Mantaka, Kowrowa, and Mona Mona.

The typographic style chosen for each area title draws influence from 1980s skateboarding logos and aims to create a sense of pride for the communities represented.
The typographic style chosen for each area title draws influence from 1980s skateboarding logos and aims to create a sense of pride for the communities represented.
All graphic elements featured in the artwork were chosen to represent the iconic natural diversity found within the local area and greater region. “The Barron River serves as a key feature and functional design element, connecting and accentuating parts of the piece. Abstracted graphic representations of the Wet Tropics bioregion vegetation maps and textures sourced from local eucalypt species serve as a background feature for the works and a directional element throughout the space and the park’s structure,” Jak explained. Another element of interest in the artwork are the constellations, which can be viewed at night directly above the park.
All graphic elements featured in the artwork were chosen to represent the iconic natural diversity found within the local area and greater region. “The Barron River serves as a key feature and functional design element, connecting and accentuating parts of the piece. Abstracted graphic representations of the Wet Tropics bioregion vegetation maps and textures sourced from local eucalypt species serve as a background feature for the works and a directional element throughout the space and the park’s structure,” Jak explained. Another element of interest in the artwork are the constellations, which can be viewed at night directly above the park.
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