The local skate community has raised alarm over the demolition of Manila Skate Park located along Quirino Avenue Extension in Paco, Manila City. 

In a petition launched by 222TilMidnight on January 9, the skateboarding collective pointed out how the skate park was unexpectedly demolished without prior notice or posted permits. As of the time of writing, Manila Mayor Honey Lacuna has not made a public statement regarding the park’s demolition.

Established in 2015, Manila Skate Park began as a response to friction between local authorities and skateboarders, who were often stigmatized and shooed from the city’s streets and parks. 

The P13-million project, spearheaded by local youth groups, took 20 years of lobbying with Manila City Hall until an agreement was met in 2013 under the administration of then-Mayor Joseph “Erap” Estrada. The project, designed by architect and skateboarding enthusiast Alain Privado, helped transform a 1,700 square-meter government lot into a skate plaza, nurturing the city’s skateboarding community since then. 

“Erasing this cultural and communal hotspot in such an abrupt manner is not only alarming, but also disheartening for many who called this park their home,” the Change.org petition said.

Mixed Priorities by Local Officials

Within the last year, several skate parks have opened across the country as growing acceptance for roller sports — such as skateboarding and rollerblading — have flourished; these skate parks include those in Pasay City, Valenzuela City, and Muntinlupa City in Metro Manila, as well as Talisay City in Cebu. 

However, the lack of spaces for the Philippine roller sport community has long been a contentious issue, despite its growing popularity — particularly, skateboarding.

One example is the Cebu City Skate Park which, in 2018, was reportedly promised by the local government in tribute to street skateboarder Margielyn Didal following her gold medal win at the Asian Games — held during the same year in Jakarta and Palembang, Indonesia. Its then-Mayor Tomas Osmeña, pledged a P5 million seed fund from his sister, Victoria Osmeña, to jumpstart the project, which was estimated at P12 million by the city council.

However, despite a groundbreaking in the city-owned lot located behind Fort San Pedro on December 4, 2018, Cebu City Skate Park never materialized, largely owing to permit issues. In October 2019, following a letter by the National Skateboarders Association addressed to the city council for updates on the project, then-city attorney and now city Councilor Rey Gealon announced no record of Victoria Osmeña’s P5 million seed fund for the skate park. In June 2024, it was reported that Gealon was eyeing the revival of the project. 

Another example is the Vitas Skate Park in Tondo, Manila City. One of the largest public parks in the country at the time, Vitas Skate Park was first built in 2016. The 1,800-square-meter park underwent renovation in 2020 under Lacuna’s predecessor, former Manila Mayor Isko Moreno, with the hopes of attracting more people to pursue skateboarding as a sport. Vitas Skate Park was later demolished in October 2024 to make way for Universidad de Manila’s extension campus.