New skatepark opens near Downtown Raleigh

RALEIGH, N.C. (WTVD) -- Raleigh continues to grow this time with the addition of a long-awaited skatepark which had its official opening Thursday morning.

Dozens of skaters took to the blacktop to try out Skate Raleigh just off Capital Boulevard near Downtown Raleigh.

"I've been waiting for something like this to happen," Jalen Ward said. "So something coming now it's like perfect timing."

Ward was one of the first skaters at the park. He's been skating for more than half his life but this is his first skate park

"This is important for the youth now especially since they... have this resources. I didn't have them so now what I want to do is come here and see those kids and I can skate with them finally you know."

It's a project organizers have been working to bring to the city for some time and now could bring people to the city.

"It's something that my wife and I look at when we're looking to move to the city. And because it's something that potentially our future children could come to, and all of our friends or they young kids can come to as well and enjoy it and try something," Martin Smith said.

The skatepark is in a temporary spot, but organizers told ABC11 the location can be built on and expanded depending on popularity.

Some are new to the sport and others are a little more seasoned, but all the skaters believe it's an opportunity to build their community.

"It's another resource. It's something where instead of hanging out in their neighborhood or something where - it may not be nothing going on there, they can come to the skatepark and skate whether people meet friends- I've seen people form brotherhoods throughout skating," Ward said. "This is really cool to have this now for us to come together in like build a community here."