Funds found to replace demolished skate park
GoogleA skate park which was demolished more than two years ago is likely to be replaced this summer, a councillor has said.
Houghton skate park in Sunderland was pulled down in January 2024 due to health and safety reasons.
Sunderland City Council Labour councillor, Mark Burrell, said it had been shut after water got into the structure's metal and sped up its deterioration.
He said the council now had the £250,000 required to replace the skate park and that it hoped to do so by the summer.
He said funding had come from cash secured from developers as part of planning permissions being granted in the city, also known as Section 106 payments.
Burrell said the new park would be in the same location and that he hoped designs for the scheme would be out for public consultation soon.
When asked why it had taken so long to secure a replacement park, Burrell said the closure of the ramps in 2024 had been "unexpected".
This happened after the park had been slightly moved to accommodate a new primary care centre in the area which had hastened the structure's decline, he said.
The city council said it would share updates as the project developed.
