Boyle Heights Gets A New Dyrdek Safe Skate Spot

Most Angelinos know what I’m talking about when I mention East Los Angeles or more specifically the name “WHITE FENCE”.  Especially if you were a skater back in the 90’s because the city of Boyle Heights was one of the most gang infested areas in all of LA.  I had a cousin who lived there and I remember them always making the sign of the cross of even crossing their fingers whenever a sketchy car drove by.  I didn’t really understand what hoopla was all about.  I thought to myself that it couldn’t have been any worse than where I came from WALNUT.  But apparently it was.

Decades later, I came back to the territory belonging to White Fence because my girlfriend had to visit somebody there.  As I parked my car on a hill and we walked to the person’s house and I thought to myself, “Wow, they really cleaned this place up”.  There was all sorts of new construction going on with newly developed buildings.  Although there were still some rough looking parts and I saw a huge “White Fence” piece tagged on somebody’s house, overall the place looked a lot better.

Thanks to community organizers like Rob Dyrdek who got another safe skate spot built in an inner of Los Angeles, the city of Boyle Heights will probably be a lot safer for kids to stay out of trouble and possibly learn a new hobby.  Read more about the new park below.

Rob Dyrdek Teams up with L.A. City Councilmember Jose Huizar on New Boyle Heights Skate Plaza

Grand Opening for $325,000 addition to Eastside’s Hollenbeck Park, part of Dyrdek’s “Safe Spot Skate Spot Program.”

Rob Dyrdek and Councilmember José Huizar will join up with some of the biggest skateboarding stars in the business to celebrate the Grand Opening of a $325,000 state-of-the-art skate plaza in Boyle Heights. The Rob Dyrdek Safe Spot Skate Spot at Hollenbeck Park will officially open at 3 p.m. on Dec. 17, 2009, and will include free giveaways, including skateboards autographed by Dyrdek, as well as skateboarding demonstrations by Dyrdek and friends. This public/private partnership came to fruition after the Rob Dyrdek Skate Plaza Foundation provided $75,000 to design and assist in construction and Councilmember Huizar and the Department of Recreation and Parks worked together to secure an additional $250,000 in funds to complete the construction and landscaping improvements for the new skate park. The result is a 14,400 square foot skate park. Rob Dyrdek conceptualized and brought into reality the Safe Spot Skate Spot Program, which creates safe havens for kids to skate at across the country through the Rob Dyrdek Skate Plaza Foundation. This is the second Skate Plaza opened by Rob Dyrdek; the first being the Lafayette Park Skate Plaza. Rob has plans to continue building more Safe Spot Skate Spot locations throughout Los Angeles. Councilmember Huizar has worked with the City’s departments to bring nearly $1 million in improvements to Hollenbeck Park, which was once a haven for gang members and drug use.

Hollenbeck Park
415 South Saint Louis St. (near Sixth St.)
Los Angeles, CA 90033