Rochester families plan to open new indoor skate park

ROCHESTER - Even as Laura and Adam Kramer watched their 11-year-old son Charlie get into skateboarding, there was always a nagging question: Where could people skate in Rochester in the winter?

Rochester has a skate park near Silver Lake that's busy in summer — it's where residents like pro skateboarder Alec Majerus learned to shred. But the city hasn't had an indoor skate park in years.

That may soon change. The Kramers are partnering with Laura's brother and sister-in-law, Brad and Nina Webbles, to create a new indoor facility for skaters. Dubbed "the Garden" — after a family joke over where to put a skate ramp — the indoor park could be open by the end of the year.

"We maybe talked about it a couple of years ago and just toyed with the idea," Laura Kramer said. "We've just kind of always been watching."

Young Charlie Kramer has been skating for about three years, but he and other skateboarders in the area must travel at least an hour to skate at an indoor park during the winter.

The Kramers, who own Kramer Contracting in Rochester, keep tabs on property development in the city and found a prime location in the former Whiskey Bones Roadhouse site on the north side. They bought the site last month for $850,000, which includes a former 8,000-square-foot bar.

The walls and floors are covered in graffiti and questionable messages, but the two couples plan to refurbish the building over the next few months. If all goes well, the Garden could open in time for the holiday season.

A Twin Cities-based, skater-led advocacy group, City of Skate, is lobbying the Legislature to create a statewide matching fund program for communities interested in skate facilities. The group pushed to get $15 million as part of a bonding package this year, but lawmakers adjourned the legislative session without passing a bonding bill.

Paul Forsline, executive director of City of Skate, said Rochester is one of the leading communities that skaters have in mind. Local officials look to update Silver Lake and the skate park over the next few years, and skateboarders hope to see the city invest in a regional skate park for BMX riders, inline skaters, scooter riders and more.

"There's always been a great skate scene in Rochester," Forsline said.

More than 35 communities have contacted City of Skate in recent years for guidance or support in building skate parks, and interest is only growing since skateboarding made its Olympic debut in 2020.

The Kramers and Webbles say they're getting plenty of community interest. Brad Webbles said the Garden gets hundreds of hits a week on the website they've created, while community members keep approaching the team with ideas.

The Garden team is working with local skaters to design the park, which will feature more street-style skate amenities.

Laura Kramer will manage the park, which will also include a skate shop, coffee shop, office space for Kramer Contracting and a community gathering space. The Garden could also add bowls and vert ramps outside for the warm months.

It all depends on renovations done over the next few months — and ongoing interest in the area.