Detractors of the park cite reasons including "incessant grinding of skateboard wheels *, loud music and vandalism."

Orinda resident Sarah Douglas espoused the opposite opinion succinctly: "It distresses me greatly that in Orinda, Moraga and other communities in this area, it's almost illegal to be a child. We are not entitled to, just because we own houses here, utter solitude and silence."

The park is to be built on a 9,000-square-foot site at the Moraga Commons, in part because of its proximity to public transportation, a choice also approved of by the Editors of SkateboardDirectory.com.

Mayor Michael Majchrzak, who voted for the park, offered another positive angle on the park: "One thing I've heard this evening is that we're going to attract ... young people in who want to have fun. I thought that's what a park was for."

Conceivably, the skatepark will increase use of public transportation, use of nearby public facilities, and business to local stores, thus aiding the economy and well-being of the local economy and community at multiple levels.

The original article was found at http://www.bayarea.com/mld/cctimes/news/local/3462110.htm

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