Though the economy has stalled plans for a Mount Airy skate plaza, skateboarders are still here — and so are city police, who are reaching out to youths to prevent problems the popular pastime sometimes poses.

“We’re working on what we can do something about,” Lt. Jim Armbrister of the Mount Airy Police Department said Monday of the need to manage skateboarding activities in the absence of a designated facility for the sport.

Until such a park comes about — with the nonprofit group Skate Mount Airy Inc. having achieved less than half of a $100,000 fundraising goal for the project so far — police are concerned about persistent problems from skateboarding elsewhere in town. “Mostly being on private property,” Armbrister said.

In 2008, said Armbrister, who works in the department’s Community Services Division, local police received nearly 130 complaints from local residents related to skateboarding. The practice has caused damage to stair railings and other structures used for makeshift ramps at churches, bank parking lots and residential locations, and some skateboarders have been disrespectful to property owners.

However, Armbrister was quick to add that the majority of the skaters are not causing problems. “Like too many situations you run into, you’ve got a few spoiling the image for all,” he said.

Last week, Mount Airy officers met with more than 40 skateboarders, along with some interested parents, to discuss issues and work together to help improve the image and safety of skateboarding in the community.

Part of the discussion involved reviewing city ordinances and state laws regarding the use of skateboards on public streets and sidewalks as they pertain to vehicles and pedestrians, trespassing and damage to property.

Armbrister said those encompass the three most frequent skateboard violations occurring in the city, which has an ordinance regulating the practice. It states that “no person on roller skates or riding any coaster, toy vehicle or similar device shall go upon any roadway, other than a street set aside as a play street, except while crossing a street at a crosswalk or intersection, and no person shall ride any such device or toy vehicle on any sidewalk in a business district.”

Violating that ordinance can subject a skateboarder to a misdemeanor offense punishable by court costs of $120 in addition to a fine.

Yet safety of the skateboarders also is a concern, Armbrister said in pointing to the hazards from motorists that youths face from using the streets.

Meanwhile, handling skateboarding violations also generates problems for police. “It does take time to deal with as far as responding to citizen complaints,” Armbrister acknowledged. “It takes time away from other activities officers are working on.”

Armbrister added that in interacting with local skateboarders, police are trying to improve the situation through education rather than legal enforcement actions. He said they want to impress upon the youths how their behavior, while seemingly innocent, can lead to major ramifications for the skateboarding community.

Code Of Conduct

Responsible skaters in town are trying to encourage a better understanding of the laws throughout the skateboarding community to help reduce incidents of violations. They are considering development of a code of conduct to follow which will enhance not only compliance with laws but also help to demonstrate and build positive character traits, according to Armbrister.

Skateboarders serving as good role models will tend to isolate and pinpoint the few who are hurting the overall image of a sport Armbrister considers a wholesome and healthy pastime. “These few would then be targeted for stricter enforcement actions, if needed to gain compliance with laws and increase the level of safety for all involved,” the police spokesman added.

Armbrister hopes the new initiative between officers and skateboarders will lead to the latter policing themselves rather than law enforcement becoming more involved.

While it is not known when the proposed skateboarding facility at Riverside Park will become reality, one thing is certain: The sport shows no signs of waning in Mount Airy.

“There are more and more people skateboarding,” Armbrister agreed. “They’re starting to blossom out just like the flowers.”

Contact Tom Joyce at tjoyce@mtairynews.com or at 719-1924.