Rideable City 

What is it? 

From these conversations she heard that a lack of opportunities and spaces for young people to “hang out” in their community along with a lack of rideable spaces was negatively impacting on young people.

South Australia is very much a city State, and many young people regularly access the city to earn, learn and play. It is not surprising then, that for many young people they are looking for spaces and activities within their city that are youth focused; places and spaces where they see their interests and ideas supported and valued. 

The city skate park formerly located on North Terrace was for many young people that space. It was iconic and embodied a vibe that was theirs. When it was demolished in 2015 to make way for the new Royal Adelaide Hospital it mobilised a number of skate park users and others to take action to ensure those making planning decisions knew how important it was, not only for the users themselves but for young people more broadly who saw it as vital to cultivating young people’s entitlement to a presence in their city centre.  Much has been said about the demolition of the city skate park since and just how significant the demolition of the city skate park was for young people.

To their credit the Adelaide City Council noted the importance of the park and set about finding an alternative location and design that would involve input from young people themselves.