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Brooklyn’s controversial $11 million skate park has cleared a major hurdle.
After two years of heated debate, packed public meetings and competing petitions, the proposed Brooklyn Skate Garden at Mount Prospect Park received a major green light when the Brooklyn Community Board 8 voted to approve the $11 million project, moving forward plans for a new skate-focused recreation space between Grand Army Plaza and the Brooklyn Museum. The vote marks one of the biggest milestones yet for a proposal that has divided neighbors while energizing the borough's skateboarding community.
The project, backed by The Skatepark Project—the nonprofit founded by skateboarding legend Tony Hawk—was originally envisioned as a roughly 40,000-square-foot facility. Following community feedback and opposition from some local residents, the design was cut by more than half and now calls for a 19,500-square-foot skate garden integrated into the existing park landscape.
Supporters say the project will fill a longstanding gap in Central Brooklyn's recreational infrastructure. Plans include spaces for skateboarding, BMX riding, roller skating and inline skating, alongside new landscaping, pathways and seating areas designed for non-skaters as well. The city says the project will add 19 new trees, native plantings, upgraded walkways, drainage improvements, drinking fountains and benches.
“This is a defining moment,” Brooklyn Skate Garden executive director Loren Michelle told BKReader following the vote, describing the facility as a future home for New York City's wheeled-sports community.
Not everyone is celebrating. Opponents, including the advocacy group Friends of Mount Prospect Park, have argued that replacing existing open lawn with concrete will diminish valuable green space and contribute to urban heat-island effects. The group has spent years campaigning against the proposal and pushing for alternative locations.
The controversy has spilled onto neighborhood forums as well, where residents remain sharply divided between those excited about new recreation opportunities and those concerned about losing parkland.
Despite the disagreements, momentum now appears to be on the project's side. The proposal has also received approval from the city's Public Design Commission, and construction could begin as early as next spring following procurement and final approvals.
If built, the Brooklyn Skate Garden would become one of four new skate parks planned across New York City through the partnership between NYC Parks and The Skatepark Project. For Brooklyn's skaters, it's a long-awaited victory. For Prospect Heights residents, the debate over what belongs in one of the neighborhood's most visible parks may not be over just yet.