Ben Silverglate really wants a new skate park.
There's one within walking distance of the 14-year-old's Eagan home, but it's falling apart. Its metal ramps are rusting. All but one of its rails have been stolen. And although it draws a group of regular skaters, it's not attracting many new faces.
"I've seen a lot of really nice skate parks, and when I compare them to Eagan, Eagan's is very subpar," said Silverglate, a freshman at Eagan High School. "Once Burnsville got their new one, I really realized that we needed to get on the ball about that."
A new skate park — which Silverglate will be involved in creating — is on a long list of Eagan parks projects scheduled for completion in the next five years. Most of the city's 55 parks were built amid a residential housing boom in the 1980s — and now their age is starting to show.
New Parks Director Andrew Pimental wants to make some major changes. Upgrades will include trails, public art and a splash pad and will cost about $5 million between 2017 and 2021.
Money will come from the park reserve fund, which now stands at about $2.7 million. The plan is to spend some of that money while feeding parks revenue back into it, maintaining a balance of about $1 million.
The reserve fund is a combination of tax dollars and park dedication funds that developers contribute when they build in Eagan. The City Council will give the official go-ahead for 2017 park projects in November or December, said City Administrator Dave Osberg.
The city tightened parks spending in the years after the Great Recession and hasn't jumped on trendy items, like pickleball courts, in the way that some of its south metro neighbors have. Some projects, including lighting on athletic fields, natural trails at Patrick Eagan Park and warming-house upgrades, have been delayed for years.