Village board reviewing skateboard ordinances

Having been approached by residents wanting something done to address the issue of skateboarding on village sidewalks and streets, the members of the St. Johnsville Village Board of Trustees are beginning to review ordinances adopted by nearby municipalities.
Mayor James Kierzinski, at the July 20 village board meeting, read from the village of Canajoharie’s ordinance which does not allow children, teens or adults to ride skateboards on village streets.
“The penalties state that anyone found in violation of the ordinance can have his or her skateboard confiscated and can face a fine of no more than $250 and/or no more than 15 days in jail,” he said.
Kierzinski added that before the village could eliminate the use of skateboards, a designated area in which children and teens could ride their skateboards would have to be created.
“To do this, to completely eliminate skateboarding on village sidewalks and streets, the village, in my opinion, would have to provide a place where children can go and ride their skateboards,” he said.
The village previously designated a skateboarding area on the tennis courts at Soldiers and Sailors Memorial Park, however, Kierzinski said the ramps were removed due to their abuse. “Instead of riding their skateboards over the ramps, we had people riding their bicycles over them,” he said.
Chief of Police William Stack said that while the village currently does not have a local law governing the use of skateboards in place, the police department is doing its best to address the situation.
“We have confiscated skateboards, we have spoken to parents, we are doing what we can to address this issue,” he said. “A majority of the time when it comes to skateboarding we are dealing with children who are underage, so the responsibility, ultimately, falls back on the parents.”
“There needs to be some kind of middle ground when dealing with skateboards,” said Kierzinski.
Colleen Bartlett approached the board with her concerns about skateboarding at the June 15 meeting. She raised issue with children weaving in and out traffic while riding a skateboard, and with who would be at fault if a child were to injure themselves while riding a skateboard on the sidewalk.
“Not only is it a nuisance, but it’s dangerous,” she said about children and teens riding their skateboards on village streets. “I do not want to see someone cause an accident, nor do I want to see someone seriously injured. There has to be something that the village can do.”